Going Solo
by WikketKrikket
Summary: With Hikaru ill and stuck in bed, surely it's Kaoru's job to take care of him- but not if his parents have their way. Sent to England for the summer to avoid the illness, Kaoru's in for a rocky journey; and one he must make alone. Possible Kaoru/OC
1. Tea and Cakes

A/N: It's been a while, hasn't it? Or maybe not that long... Well, here we are with a new fic, and I have to say I'm somewhat 'returning to my roots'. Not to say this another of the killer one-shots of old, but ignoring the novel I should be writing, short chapters, probably irregular updates and no written plan. XD You have been warned. I do have ideas, of course, but nothing has been pegged down. Sometimes it's nicer to write that way, don't you think? Ah, I'm babbling. Stop it. _(self-slap)_

_Disclaimer: Ouran High School Host Club does not belong to me. Naturally._

Going Solo

Chapter One- Tea and Cake

It was raining at Birmingham International Airport and Kaoru, for one, was glad. It was bleak weather, to match this bleak place and his bleak mood. He did _not _want to be spending his summer break here. He put out a hand to catch some rain droplets and wondered if this was really what England called a summer. He had always wanted to come here, but already he hated it. Maybe it was because he felt so completely alone here. It wasn't just a feeling. He had never been this alone. He hadn't even done that first most daunting journey, hadn't even been born, alone. Leaving Hikaru behind had been like leaving behind an arm or a leg or a hand, some attachment that had been loped off. His mother had told him to 'make the best of it'. But as he watched the umbrellas going up around him he wondered if even she would have been able to.

"Kaoru-san?" That girl was behind him. He hated her already, her and her fat cheeks and easy smile. He knew it was irrational and it wasn't her fault he was here, but if he looked he could find ways to blame her. She had been, after all, the one who had agreed to let him stay. "The train is coming soon. You need to come back inside."

Kaoru said nothing, merely took hold of his suitcase handle and turned, heading back through the revolving door of the airport. This wasn't going to be a holiday, this was going to be purgatory. He almost envied Hikaru. Almost.

*

They had made all sorts of plans for the summer break, most of them involving dressing Haruhi up. Kaoru had plenty of plans of his own too, most of them involving setting Haruhi and Hikaru up. But then it had all gone wrong.

He had always been quicker at getting up, so he hadn't thought anything of it when he was up and moving before his brother. He took a long, leisurely shower, dressed and headed back into their bedroom, wanting to see if Hikaru was up to have breakfast. The maids, he saw, had already slipped in and made his bed, but Hikaru's was still occupied.

"Come on, Hikaru." He said, shaking his shoulder. "You can't stay there all day, you know."

"Get off..." Hikaru said, hitting Kaoru's hand away before burying his head deeper into the pillows. "I don't feel well."

"That's just sleepiness. Come on, we were going to take Haruhi to the amusement park today, weren't we?"

"Mmm." Hikaru clearly didn't care, scratching idly at his arm. "Go without me."

"What? But..." Kaoru noticed his brother was scratching his other arm now. "...Are you okay?"

"Like I said..."

Concerned now, Kaoru felt his forehead. "Hey, you are kinda hot."

"Good, so will you leave me alone?" Hikaru snapped, scratching the back of his neck.

"...You keep scratching..." Kaoru said, peering through the gloom. "...We've had chicken pox, right?"

They had. But as it turned out, Hikaru had it again.

"Wait, is it even possible to get it twice?" Kaoru demanded.

"Yes, occasionally." The doctor nodded. "And if Hikaru-san got it again, there's a good chance you could too. I recommend you two are separated for a little while."

"What?!"

"He's right, Kaoru." Their mother said, anxious. "Chickenpox is worse for adults then for children. Your father got it when he was twenty-two and was in bed for three weeks... and then there are complications! If you got sick too, Mama would be so worried..."

And despite all his protestations, no-one would listen and they began to decide what to do with him. Unfortunately, they had realised that if he were allowed to stay in the house he would find a way to sneak into their room and spend as much time with Hikaru as he normally would. He had to go somewhere else. He almost went to stay with Tamaki, until they recalled how easily moved Tamaki was- before too long Kaoru would have convinced him to help him break back into home. Then his father hit on what his parents considered the perfect solution.

"What about the Grahams?"

"Oh!" His mother smiled. "That's a great idea."

"Grahams...?" Kaoru repeated. The name was familiar, but he couldn't place it.

"Do you remember the couple who came to stay with us last summer? Well no, I suppose you didn't have much to do with them... they showed you a picture of their daughter. The plump blond girl."

"Would you call that blond?" Kaoru said immediately. He didn't remember much about the parents, but the picture had given them a kind of morbid fascination. It was like the girl pictured wasn't even trying to be cute. Maybe England's standards weren't so high. He wondered what had happened to that picture; he didn't remember throwing it out or giving it back...

"Yes, well... when they stayed here, they said we'd be welcome to stay with them any time, it would be a little rude not to accept it." His mom smiled, and Kaoru saw what she was getting at.

"No way!"

"Come on." She wheedled. "You've always wanted to go, you could look on it as a holiday! And they have a gorgeous little cottage in the countryside! Very English!"

"I'm not going abroad!"

"Kaoru, don't shout." His father said, mildly.

"Then don't try to send me to England!"

"You'll wake Hikaru."

Kaoru stopped shouting but glared just as venomously. "I'm not going." He hissed.

"Kaoru..." His mom looked suddenly tired, and hugged him. "You've been working hard encouraging Hikaru and Haruhi-chan, haven't you?"

"Well, yeah, but what's that got to do with anything?"

"Isn't it because... you recognise he'll need his own life in the end and you want him to be happy?"

Kaoru found he couldn't say anything to that. He didn't think his mother understood, and now she showed she did. What could he say?

"It works two ways, Kaoru. You have to go out and have your own adventures too. You need to grab life with both hands, and you can't if you're clinging onto Hikaru. You're the smart one, Kaoru, he won't let go till you do. So... for both your sakes..."

"Mom..."

"So, it's settled!"

"I didn't agree!"

She smiled. "You don't have a choice, so you may as well make the best of it."

And that was the end of it. No matter how obstinate and argumentative Kaoru was, no-one would listen. The Grahams were duly contacted, and it was the daughter, Ellie, who answered. She explained that her parents had gone directly from Japan the previous summer to Paris, to work there for some time. It had already been over a year, but she was sure their business wouldn't keep them much longer. In the meantime, she said, she would be glad to have Kaoru come and stay for the summer.

It was _not _for the whole summer, Kaoru insisted to himself. The moment Hikaru was better, he was coming home. He just had to put up with this damp and dreary place till then.

"Where are we getting the train to?" He asked. The Graham girl's Japanese was good, so he saw no reason to tax himself trying to speak English, though his mother would have said it was politer.

"Worchester." She replied, smiling, leading them onto a platform where the next train was to Birmingham New Street. "Worry not, Birmingham is not a favourite place but we have to go there first and change."

Perhaps not so good. Oh well.

"As in the sauce?" He asked, unimpressed. She, however, seemed to find it funny.

"Yes, that's right." She giggled. "You have it in Japan also?"

"Yeah..." He couldn't help but look at her sideways. "But you say it weird. Worcestershire."

"No, that's how it's said. Wuss-ter-sheer."

"Hmmph. Well, if you don't want people to say it Wor-chest-ter-shire then you shouldn't spell it that way." She laughed. "I'm not trying to be funny!" He snapped. Did this girl not understand rudeness? It frustrated him.

"Kaoru-san..." She glanced around embarrassed at the people listening in confusion at this Japanese conversation interspersed with the correct pronunciation of Worchester.

"Hmmph. All I'm saying is, you can go to _Wooster _if you want, I'm going to Worchester."MHmmH

"Yes, Kaoru-san." She turned away to hide her smile. Kaoru tightened his grip on the handle of his suitcase.

This was going to be a long holiday, and if he couldn't even have any fun at her expense, it was going to be even longer.

*

_Grace Graham_. It was a small brand, but one growing in popularity. Many people liked the way the name sounded. Kaoru's mother, her finger always on the pulse of the fashion world, had heard good things about the designer who had started off by designing and making clothes in the Worcestershire countryside before her talent was recognised by her husband and eventually the brand was picked up by one of the British supermarkets, eventually spreading into being an entity of its own, with stores across the United Kingdom. Western Europe followed suit, with the double G logo cropping up here and there across France, Spain and Germany. However, in such things England had always had a better relationship with the USA, and it was there more than anywhere else people fell in love with the designer alongside a spate of other fashions crossing the pond. It was the age of 'cool Britannia', they said. Long may it reign.

Kaoru wasn't sure who had approached who the previous summer, but somehow the Grahams ended up staying at their home on a short break to Japan, during which time they discussed using the Hitachiin stores as a basis for a launch of the range in Japan. The talks reached no conclusion- _Grace Graham _was still relatively unknown and by no means ready to make an international venture- but the link was established. And somehow all that had lead to him lying here, under the beams of that very same cottage the brand had begun in. The bed was creaky and the rain was drumming down on the roof above him. His watch read one PM, but that was Japanese time. The clock on the wall claimed it was four AM. Stupid country. Even so, he was sure he could hear movement downstairs. Did that mean Ellie was up already?

He shuffled a little guiltily. He had been tired and in a foul mood upon his arrival- both of which he could see were going to continue for some time- but maybe he had been a little too rude to her? Or maybe not. He didn't want to be here, so it would be ruder to pretend that he did.

Besides, if she hated him, she would say she couldn't cope with having him stay here a moment longer and he'd _have _to be allowed home.

It wasn't like she attempted to make herself particularly likeable. So far she had done nothing to ease his irritation except laugh at it. Not that she was unpleasant, just... boring. There was nothing about her personality that was particularly memorable, even her appearance was dishevelled. Maybe being surrounded by models all the time made him expect a little more effort from people in terms of their appearance, but she wasn't trying at all. To be fair, she seemed to have lost some weight since the time the photo was taken, but it had left her with the strange gaunt half-there look of someone who had lost a lot of weight too quickly- and she still wasn't particularly skinny. Someone needed to tell her crash dieting was not the way to go. She wore no make-up and her clothes were all too big for her, her hair wasn't blond or brown and she had just tied it back in a ponytail. There were few girls who could pull off a ponytail, and they all had better bone structure than she did. Bored of lying in bed and staring at the darkened ceiling, he headed downstairs to investigate the noise.

Ellie was in the kitchen and didn't notice his approach, presumably because she appeared to be singing to the oven. "Cook, cook, hurry and cook little cakies, be nice and hot, but not so hot we burn ourselves, choco-co-late cakies..." She sang. Tunelessly.

"What are you doing?" Kaoru asked, announcing his presence. She jumped and turned to face him.

"Kaoru-san!"

"Graham-chan." He answered.

"Oh... no, you can call me Ellie." Trying to hide her blush, she pulled the oven door open and pressed gently on one of the chocolate fairy cakes just finishing cooking. Apparently satisfied, she took them out and set them cool on the hob.

"Grey-chan suits you fine." Kaoru replied, though he wasn't so sure any more. Was she grey and boring or just weird? He didn't know of anyone who would be baking at this time of the morning except Honey. And they all knew he was weird.

"Grey-chan... I like it." She smiled, not realising, as usual, she was being mocked.

"Going back to the original point," Kaoru said, irritated. At this rate, she'd never hate him enough to send him back to Japan. "What are you doing?"

"Oh! I thought, seeing as it's about lunchtime in Japan, you might want a snack."

"So you got up at four AM and made cakes?"

"Well, I got up about an hour ago... but yes. They should be a little cooler now, please feel free to try one."

"Hmmph. You know, if you didn't eat cake in the middle of the night, you might be slimmer." Kaoru pointed out, picking one out and making sure it wasn't still hot enough to burn. Ellie's smile had slipped just slightly he noticed. At last. He peeled the case off and sniffed it cautiously.

"It's not poisoned." She said, taking one herself. She had injected her voice with the lightness of a joke, but was that a tinge of annoyance? Kaoru smirked. He could get under anyone's skin if he wanted to. And maybe he upset the daughter, the parents would be upset and wouldn't do any deals with his parents. It would just show what happened when you tried to forcibly separate the two of them.

"It better be good." He said, and bit into it. It was just a little bit crunchy on top, soft and springy in the middle. As it should be. True, it wasn't anything that special, nothing like the delicacies of Paris, but it definitely wasn't bad. Not for something home made in the small hours of the morning.

"It's wet but it's pretty warm out." Ellie said, making a cup of tea. "I thought I might sit out on the decking. Would you like to join me?"

With nothing better to do, he agreed. She lead him out the back door, onto a wooden deck with a roof over the top. The rain dripped off the guttering, into the black pre-dawn, just beginning to be tinged purple. There were rustlings all around. Mice and hedgehogs and foxes and badgers, he supposed. Or rats. England had a lot of rats.

"You can use my dad's." She said, gesturing to a wooden rocking chair with thick cushions on it. He sat down and noted the slight scent of mildew, natural to fabric that was left outside in such a damp environment. The cushions themselves were dry, but he still decided not to sink too far back into it. She handed him a warm mug, and he wrapped his fingers around it gratefully as she took her own rocker.

"This is warm?" He demanded. She laughed.

"It'll warm up when it gets light. If the weather clears, there's a wonderful view of the countryside and the Malvern hills."

"Malvern... didn't we drive through there in the taxi?"

"Right." She said, rocking gently back and forth. "Funny. I thought you were asleep by then."

He scowled at her and sipped his tea. It was all he could do not to spit it back out. He was well acquainted with Western milk tea, but this was... "Eww, what is this?!"

"Earl Grey. Do you not like it?"

"It tastes like dirty dishwater." Kaoru said bluntly, going to the edge of the decking and tipping the rest out on the flowerbed underneath. She didn't seem to care.

"I suppose it's an acquired taste. We can go down to Bromyard tomorrow and get some normal stuff."

"Good." Kaoru said. "I thought when I came here you would at least feed me."

"The cake was good, wasn't it?"

"I guess..."

"Good."

They sat in silence for a while, rocking and creaking and, for Kaoru at least, freezing. Around half past five, it was beginning to get light, though it looked like it would be another grim and rainy day. In the half-light, he noticed she had fallen asleep, chin on her chest. Her neck was going to hurt when she woke up. He nudged her chair with his foot until it tipped forward abruptly and she jolted awake.

"If you're going to sleep, go back inside." He commanded.

"...you're right, sorry." She stood up, stretching, and rubbed the back of her neck. "But... it's too close to time to get up to go back to sleep. I'll make some coffee."

"It had better be better than the tea." Kaoru sniped, following her inside. Then he noticed he was treading in a puddle. Following it, he saw the water dripping from the edges of the table. The whole surface was covered in water, the cakes were ruined, and there was a hole in the roof letting the rain in.

Ellie finally regained movement and removed the cakes, placing a washing up bowl beneath the drip. "I guess we've sprung a leak." She said. "I'll mop up."

"...Call me when breakfast is done." Kaoru sighed, heading upstairs. Some holiday this was turning out to be. He flopped down on the bed, folding his arms behind his head.

He wanted to go home.

*

A/N: And so ends chapter one, the pesky introduction chapter. Written on a typically grey and drizzly English morning- it may be January but it feels like the summer! XD Just to say, while I have visited Worcester and Bromyard and Malvern etc a lot in the past, and I'll be as true as possible to the places, it's been quite some time since I've been to any of them; so my memory may prove false.

Also, Ellie's got it wrong. Earl Grey tea should be served black with lemon. D:


	2. Wellington Boots

A/N: Another chapter, so soon? Wonderful :D But then, should a second chapter _really_ be shorter than the opening one? Oh well. To be honest, several chapters could be put together into one, and this could have been one of my killer one shots, but I'm quite enjoying these short, sharp chapters. I think it will help the pacing a lot; I always spend too long dilly-dallying around with frankly irrelevant stuff. Like these A/Ns. To the chapter!

Disclaimer: Consider it disclaimed.

Chapter Two- Wellington Boots

"So how is it?" Hikaru asked. His voice sounded tinny and far away.

"I hate it." Kaoru replied, immediately. "All it's done since I got here is rain, and as for the Graham girl, she's pretty boring. Her idea of going 'out' was to make me walk all the way down to the nearest village in all the mud and wet to buy teabags."

"Seriously? How lame."

"Yeah, I think I was meant to be appreciating the scenery or something. She seems kinda dull- I call her Grey-chan."

Hikaru laughed slightly, then turned to coughing. Kaoru gripped the phone, worried. He didn't like being so far away. Hikaru hated being ill, and he must be hating it even more on his own.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

"Rubbish. Now I have the stupid chicken pox and a stupid fever to go with it." Hikaru didn't sound happy. "Wish you were here."

"Me too." Kaoru said, and decided to continue reassuring his brother that he was having as much a rotten time as he was. If Hikaru thought he was having fun, he would never forgive him. "And you know, when we got to this stupid village place it was ankle-deep in water! Whole place had flooded! But the shop was _still open_!"

"Are they stupid or something?"

"Yeah." Kaoru agreed readily. "Grey-chan said it was something like the third year this had happened, so people were more used to it. The lady in the co-op said all the water was off, though."

"In the what?"

"Oh. The Co-op. The convenience store."

"You still have water, right?"

"Yeah, there's a leak in the kitchen roof."

Hikaru laughed heartily at this, sounding more like his old self again. Kaoru smiled and tried to think of more horror stories from the last two days to cheer his brother up with, but then heard Ellie approaching on the stairs, which could only mean one thing.

"Gotta go." He sighed. "Grey-chan's on her way, which I guess means she's had another idea for a wonderful fun-filled afternoon."

"Hey, good luck." Hikaru said. "Call me again tomorrow?" He suddenly sounded pathetic, like a little kid; Kaoru's insides squirmed with guilt.

"Sure. And I'll be home before you know it." He said, urgently. "I'm trying to make sure Grey-chan gets so fed up of me she refuses to have me in the house. I'll be home before the end of the week!"

"Good idea." Hikaru replied, sounding distinctly more cheerful. "Just criticise everything!"

"It won't be hard." Kaoru said, and was forced to hang up when there was a knock on his door. "Yeah?" He called out, lazily.

"Kaoru-san," Ellie said happily as she entered the room. "Look what I found in the shed for you!" She held up some green rubber... things.

"What are those?" He demanded.

"I don't know the Japanese." She admitted. "But they're wellies! Wellington boots!"

"I am not wearing those." He said, flatly.

"But earlier you were complaining that your feet got wet." She said, apparently puzzled by his reluctance to encase his legs in bright green rubber. She pointed at his shoes, hooked over the top of the radiator to dry.

"Yeah, well, they won't be again. I'll wait till the weather dries out."

"Oh." She seemed genuinely disappointed. "I was hoping you'd come back into the village with me this afternoon."

Kaoru looked at her as if she were mad, which in his opinion she was. To walk all that way through mud and puddles into a flooded village was one thing- even if the ankle-deep he had told Hikaru about was an exaggeration and the insides of the buildings were more or less fine- but to do it _twice _in the same day was absurd. "Why," He said slowly, with as much scorn as he could muster, "Would I want to do that?"

"Well, the water's off." She said. "I've been ringing round and the pub and some of the outlying buildings can still get it, but the others won't have it till tomorrow. I thought I'd take some water down."

"But you said it's a mile-long walk."

"It is. It only takes twenty minutes, normally."

"And you're intending on carrying water all the way down there?"

"Yes."

He looked at her arms, still slightly flabby. She looked like she wouldn't be able to hold a single glass, let alone enough water for an entire village. "You won't be able to carry much." He sneered.

"That's why I hoped you'd come." She smiled encouragingly at him and set the Wellington boots down at the side of his bedroom door suggestively. "Bacon sandwich okay for lunch?"

*

Maybe he should have gone with her, that was the thought Kaoru somehow couldn't shake as he sat bored and alone in the cottage that day, watching the drizzle make its way slowly down the window of the cottage. His mood was sour. What kind of host told their guest what they were going to do, and if they didn't want to do it, go without them? Also, a bacon sandwich was not lunch. It was a snack.

Kaoru sighed and rested his head on the cool glass. This girl was beginning to annoy him and make him feel like he couldn't take any more and he was fairly sure he had intended it to be the other way around. It just seemed like she didn't know how to have any fun at all. She had said she'd be little more than an hour, but she had already been gone two. Did she just expect him to entertain himself?

Not that he was completely incapable. Once she had left with a backpack full of various containers full of water, he had taken his camera and carefully documented the ugliness of the wellington boots she had expected him to wear. Any attire made out of rubber was a crime against fashion and always would be. Evidently she hadn't inherited any of her mother's aesthetic sense. He then set about exploring the cottage properly, something he had yet had chance to do.

Cottage really wasn't the right word for it, he thought. It was too big, whatever it had been built to look like. Saying that, it was nothing compared to the mansions he and the others had. In fact, the low ceilings made it feel quite pokey. It was just it was a little large to be called a cottage, especially considering the amount of land that came with it, not only the garden but the fields surrounding it. There was the decking that connected to the back door which lead into the kitchen, jutting out of the ground floor. This had been mocked up to look like a traditional farmhouse, all flagstone floors and whitewashed walls with mugs hanging from hooks screwed into the ceiling beams. It was all-in-one with her dining room, including the table that had suffered the ill effects of the leak; which, incidentally, was still dripping merrily away. This lead into the hallway, the rickety staircase at one end then leading to the second floor. There was a bathroom, more flagstones and a deep bathtub, his guest room, what he presumed to be her parent's room- he was pleased to see a lot of clothes in her parents' wardrobe, and assuming they had taken several months worth on their trip it meant they, at least, were more conscientious when it came to clothing- and Ellie's room. That was certainly an insight. It was full of books, a good proportion of which were English translations of manga. Anime DVDs and merchandise were spread liberally around the room. Just his luck, to end up boarding with a closet otaku. At least she had a DS. He had a flick through the stack of game boxes on her desk but found nothing that he wanted to play. Interestingly, they seemed to be in use as paperweights, holding down what seemed to be a half-finished design for some clothes. Maybe she wanted to follow in her mother's footsteps after all.

That only left the living room, and as befitted its purpose, he was busy lounging in there. It was a simple but spacious room, with a large television and fireplace and several settees, armchairs and side-tables spread over its springy carpet. An old fashioned upright piano, covered in dust and the only part of the house that wasn't immaculate, sat in the corner. It was a very cosy and comfortable room, but there wasn't much to do. He was so bored, he was beginning to seriously consider returning to Ellie's room and perusing her manga, but couldn't be bothered to traipse back upstairs. He wandered over to the piano and lifted the lid. The music, open on the stand, meant nothing to him. He pressed down on a single key in a slow rhythm and the sound throbbed across the room, meeting Ellie in the doorway.

"Don't touch that!" She cried, urgently, not even bothering to say it in Japanese, dropping her empty backpack in the hallway and running across, closing the lid so quickly she almost caught his fingers in it.

"Alright, alright!" He said, throwing his hands up in the air. "Calm down! Geez! I wasn't damaging it!"

"It's my mother's piano." She said, curtly. "She doesn't like anyone touching it. Besides, I... I really, really hate piano music!"

"You hate it so much you don't dust it, huh?" Kaoru asked, running a finger along the surface of the lid.

"I told you, my mother doesn't like anyone touching it." She said sullenly, trying to pull his hand away. Kaoru stubbornly left it where it was.

"Well, she isn't here." He tugged his hand from under her grip and threw the lid up. He raised his hands up, preparing to slam down on the keys.

"No!" She yelled, back in English, forcing herself between him and it, grabbing hold of his wrists and throwing them back. Unfortunately, she pushed too hard, and the piano stool tilted backwards, toppling over and taking both of them with it. Her feet caught the piano on the way past, sending up a clashing discord of notes far worse than anything Kaoru could have produced, and the sheet music flew up in the air, eventually falling and settling on top of the human-cum-piano-stool pile up.

"Oww..." She muttered, the first sheet of the music attached to the side of her head. As she lifted it, the paper slid off, and Kaoru watched the words 'Kiss the Rain, Yiruma' slide past much like its namesake. "That hurt..."

"Get off me..." Kaoru groaned, as most of her weight seemed to be centred on his stomach.

"Ahh!" She practically threw herself across the room in her anxiety to get off him. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Are you okay?!" She was kneeling in front of him now, looking worried.

"Yeah... " He sat up, rubbing the back of his head, which had taken most of the impact. "But maybe you should lay off the cakes, Grey-chan..."

She looked at him for a moment, then started to giggle.

"I did warn you." She said, then fell into whole-hearted laughter which shook her whole body as she climbed to her feet, extending a hand to help him up. "Come on, let's get some ice for your poor head."

Before too long, she had him sitting on a chair in the kitchen and was busily trying to convince some ice cubes out of their tray and into a clean tea towel. Kaoru watched, rubbing his sore head now and then and complaining loudly. She eventually ignored him and continued, humming under her breath. It was a pretty tune, better than her cake ode at least. Still, he was getting a little peeved at being ignored.

"Hey, Grey-chan." He said, giving up on his pointed groans of pain. "Do you really hate piano music enough to give me concussion?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Mm, no reason really."

"So what about when your mom plays?"

"Oh... well, she hasn't been home for a while." Ellie pointed out. "I haven't seen my parents since they left for Japan. Mom did try to teach me the piano, but..."

"You hate piano music." Kaoru supplied.

"Right." She said, moving behind him and gently brushing his hair aside before pressing the bundled ice to the growing bump. It felt good. "You'll live." She said.

"Mm... thanks." He said, reaching behind to hold it himself, fingers lightly brushing hers. She returned to the sink to refill the trays, and she had the strangest expression on her face, a smile that reached her eyes, but the delight tinged with sadness. "What's that look for?" He demanded.

"Nothing." She said, but caved as he glared at her. "Well, Kaoru-san, I was just thinking it's the first time you've ever said thanks to me!"

Kaoru wasn't sure what to say to that, but luckily was saved from answering by the doorbell ringing.

Ellie, on the other hand, didn't seem to think it was lucky. Her hand flew to her mouth, eyes widening in horror.

"She's here."

*

A/N: Le gasp, who is the mysterious person at the door? Why does Ellie hate piano music so much? Will it ever stop raining? When did I start using rhetorical questions again? Hee, I feel just like I'm thirteen again and writing **Amusing for Inspiration**. That seems a long time ago... I've been on this site about five and a half years now, thinking about it. I don't post much any more, though. Still, I remember being that old and just discovering manga and fanfiction and so on and being _sure _I'd have outgrown it by now... but it never lets you go!! Manga. The only more expensive habit is crack. :D

My rambling aside, _Kiss the Rain _is a real piece of music which I've been listening to a lot lately. You all should too. :)


	3. Two Seater Sofa

A/N: Another chapter. I'm not sure how long it's been since I updated, but probably too long to justify given that the chapter is only three pages. I've written longer drabbles. XD Oh well, here we introduce another character. Hope you like her because she'll be hanging round for a little while longer, at least. :P

Disclaimer: As previous

Chapter Three- Two-Seater Sofa

"She's here." Ellie said, with such horror that Kaoru found himself wondering who 'she' was and what was so bad about her. Ellie offered no explanation however, saying instead "Oh no! I completely forgot! She'll kill me!"

Kaoru assumed she wasn't being literal. Or, that if she was, this girl wouldn't be violent enough to kill him too. "Then maybe don't answer the door?" He suggested.

"No, I have to..." She said, going to do just that. Kaoru stayed sitting in the kitchen wondering what was going on. A moment later, an unfamiliar voice drifted in to him.

"Hey sweetie, how're things? I brought popcorn! So, are your parents back yet?"

"Um, no, not yet. Victoria, listen, I'm kind of busy..."

"Busy? How can you possibly be busy? Isn't it girls' anime night?!"

"Yes, but... I have a guest. I'm so sorry, his coming was arranged last minute and I forgot to tell you!"

Kaoru tuned out as the conversation went on and Ellie explained things. Great, he thought, another otaku and a girls' anime night. Just what he wanted.

Only then Victoria walked in and maybe it was just what he wanted after all. Completely unexpectedly, she was beautiful. Ellie next to her really was the ugly duckling next to the swan. Victoria was taller, slimmer and better formed, her blond hair shining and immaculate. She was lithe and angular and her eyes were brilliant blue as she blinked in surprise at Kaoru.

"Hello." She said, in English. "I'm Victoria Hayden. Good to meet you."

"You too." Kaoru responded, surprised Ellie of all people would have a fashionable friend. "I'm sorry to disrupt your plans."

"That's no problem." Victoria said. "It's her fault for not telling me she had such a good-looking guest!"

"Maybe she should have told me she had a good looking friend." Kaoru returned, smiling. It was a relief to find that there were some English girls at least who worried about their appearance.

"Thank you." She said, absently fluffing out her hair. "Actually, I've been modelling for Mrs Graham since I was ten. That's how I ended up being friends with Ellie here!"

"Maybe you could show me some of your pictures sometime. My mom's Hitachiin so this kind of stuff interests me."

"Your mom is Hitachiin?!" Victoria said, delighted. "That's amazing! I _love _her stuff!"

Kaoru felt a warm glow of pride. "Yeah, it is." He agreed. This was followed by a stab of homesickness as he wondered again how Hikaru was getting on. He stared down at the whirls in the wood of the kitchen table.

"Are you alright?" Victoria asked, concerned, then noticed the ice he was holding to the back of his head. "Oh my! What has Ellie been doing to you?!" Gently she prised the ice off and admired the bump underneath. "That's quite something. You poor thing."

"It's fine." Kaoru said, replacing the ice all the same.

"Still, I should go." Victoria said, unable to stop herself looking disappointed. "I don't want to disturb you two."

"Oh, don't go." Kaoru said. "I was the one who pretty much turned up unannounced. Go ahead and watch your anime."

"Oh, no, I only watch that for Ellie. Why don't we put on something we'll all like?" She turned to her friend. "Go find a movie, okay?"

"Oh, right." Ellie answered, heading upstairs.

"Thanks, Grey-chan." Kaoru said, seeing as she had been so pleased about being thanked before.

"Grey-chan?" Victoria echoed, giggling. "Do you call her that because she's so..."

"Plain?" Kaoru supplied.

"I was going to say dull." She laughed. "It suits her, anyway. Come on." She upended the bag of popcorn into a dish and carried in on arm, taking hold of Kaoru with the other. "Let's go sit down, and I bet you three to one she'll come back with _Phantom of the Opera_."

Ellie did indeed bring _Phantom of the Opera _down just a few moments later. Victoria groaned loudly.

"Ellie, again?"

"Yes." Ellie defended. "I like this film."

"I like cake, but if I ate it as much as you do..." Victoria let her sentence trail off. Kaoru couldn't help but smile, remembering the four am cake session.

"I just like baking." Ellie frowned.

"Sure." Victoria smirked. Kaoru had to try even harder not to laugh. If it had just been him and Ellie, he might have done- he had to get her to hate him, after all- but he didn't want Victoria to think he was cruel. His being stuck here was nothing to do with her.

"You can't have too much of a good thing." Ellie said staunchly, putting the DVD in and then turning to find somewhere to sit.

Victoria had lead Kaoru over to a two-seater sofa on the edge of the room, curling her legs up underneath her in such a way that she was ever-so-slightly angled towards him. He wondered why he was even so aware of it. Either way, there was no room for Ellie. She sat down in an armchair on the edge of the room and settled down to watch the film, coming across only to steal popcorn occasionally. She was unusually quiet, Kaoru thought, but it didn't really matter because Victoria certainly made up for it; criticising the 'stalker' phantom and 'fop' Raoul. Kaoru had never seen the film before, but he had to admit the storyline was pretty stupid. At least the music wasn't unbearable. Still, it was the sort of film he would have hated without Victoria's commentary making it funny.

Eventually, the film ended, and Victoria stood to go.

"Hey, do you guys have any plans?" She asked. "We should hang out more. Maybe we could take a look round Worcester tomorrow or something."

"What's in Worcester anyway?" Kaoru asked.

"...just shops. Pretty standard really." She laughed. "Oh, but the river is pretty! You can take boat trips and stuff, too."

"That sounds fun." Kaoru answered.

"I was going to take Kaoru walking up the Malverns tomorrow." Ellie interrupted.

"Oooh, hill walking, how thrilling." Victoria rolled her eyes. "Honestly, El..."

Kaoru had to admit he agreed with her. "I'm more of a town person." He said.

"Fine." She sighed, taking the empty popcorn bowl out to the kitchen. "Why don't you come over here for ten tomorrow, Victoria, and we'll decide where to go then."

She must have known she'd lost, Kaoru thought, but didn't want to give in yet.

*

"You sound like you're having fun." Hikaru sounded peeved and Kaoru had to immediately backtrack.

"No, not really." He said hastily. "You know what? She probably wasn't even that pretty. It's probably just because I've been stuck looking at Grey-chan all week."

Hikaru said nothing, breaking off to cough. He wasn't any better, to Kaoru's disappointment. Even so, that wasn't the only sound he was worried about. It was almost three am, but he could have sworn he could hear noises coming from Ellie's room next door. It sounded like crying.

He wondered if it was because he had said no to going hill walking. He wanted her to hate him, but he only wanted to make her mad. He didn't want to make her cry...

"So what're you guys doing tomorrow?" Hikaru asked.

"Ellie wants to do _more _walking." Kaoru sighed. "Seriously, I bet she doesn't normally do this much walking. Otherwise she wouldn't be so fat."

But then again, she was nowhere near as fat as she had been on that photograph. She actually looked a little unhealthy in that respect, like she was losing weight too fast. Come to think of it, she hardly ate anything. It really was a mystery how she was still... plump.

Hikaru laughed. "She's doing it to spite you. She probably didn't want you in the house after all."

"Maybe." Kaoru agreed. "Victoria wanted to go into town instead, maybe she'll come rescue me."

They talked a little more, but in the end Hikaru realised how tired Kaoru was and hung up. Stifling a yawn, Kaoru got into bed and realised he could still hear Ellie crying quietly. He considered going to check on her, but it wasn't like they were friends. It would be more embarrassing than comforting for both of them. Besides, he was tired. Ignoring the sound, he settled down and was soon asleep. The next morning, as they were in the kitchen waiting for Victoria, he decided not to mention it, even though she still seemed troubled.

"Kaoru-san." She said, eventually.

"Yeah?"

"Just... be careful of Victoria."

That hadn't been what he was expecting. "What do you mean?"

"...nothing." She said, shaking her head. "Never mind. Have you decided what to do today?"

"I think we should go into town."

"I see." She sighed but didn't argue. "Then please go and gather what you need. The buses don't run very often so we'll need to leave soon."

Kaoru headed back upstairs to grab his wallet and phone, as well as a jacket; because although the sun was out he was almost certain it would be raining again by this afternoon. Downstairs, the phone started ringing. Probably Victoria cancelling, he decided glumly, heading out of his bedroom door. The Wellington boots still stood next to it.

He thought of Ellie crying last night. Well, if Victoria wasn't coming...

Grimacing, he pushed his feet into the things, trying not to look at them and headed downstairs. Ellie was surprised.

"I thought now would be a good time to go hill walking." Kaoru explained. "While the sun's out."

He had been spending too much time with Tamaki.

She smiled happily. "Alright! I bet Victoria will need some wellies too... I'll go find some in the shed." She headed for the back door. "Oh... Kaoru-san, I'm sorry, but that phone call... something urgent came up so I won't be able to entertain you tomorrow. I'm really sorry!"

"It's fine." Kaoru answered, privately thinking it couldn't be any more boring without her. At least Victoria hadn't cancelled after all.

When she arrived, she wasn't impressed with the hill walking idea either, but seemed to know they were doing it to humour Ellie, or at the very least because Kaoru felt sorry for her. She seemed even less impressed by the Wellington boots, claiming she would die of shame. At least hers were black rather than frog green. She was only convinced into them to stop herself getting mud on her designer jeans. Her top was one of his mother's, Kaoru noticed.

She perked up, however, when realising Ellie would be busy the next day.

"That's okay." She said quickly. "I can entertain Kaoru. We can go into Worcester."

"I'd like that." Kaoru answered, and so it was settled. Things were finally looking up.

Of course, it was harder to remain optimistic when he was up to his knees in mud half way up a hill in the middle of nowhere.

*

A/N: But the Malvern Hills are nice. They get bottled water from there. Hope you enjoyed!

And yes, I was listening to Phantom of the Opera while I wrote this. XD But I always intended to have her like it...


	4. Candy Pebbles

A/N: I never knew I was able to write such short chapters. Ah well, here's another. Disclaimer applies as always.

Chapter Four- Candy Pebbles

Kaoru was convinced, as he sat in the metal bathtub scrubbing his legs _again_ that English mud was somehow stickier than anywhere else in the world and somehow got through everything. Despite the wellington boots and the jeans he had been wearing the day before, he had still come and found mud on his legs. He had washed a dozen times last night, but even this morning he was convinced his legs were still stained. He would have complained to Ellie, except he hadn't seen her. She was always up far earlier than him, but she would usually come down and make him breakfast and sit with him while he ate. This morning there had been just a bowl and spoon and box of cereal on the table with a note giving directions to the fridge and she was nowhere in sight. He wondered if she was even in the house. She had said she had things she had to do today, although she had yet to be more specific. Oh well, it wasn't like he cared. A day away from her dull company had to be beneficial. He had definitely been too nice to her yesterday. His target of 'the end of the week' seemed to be less and less within his reach. After all, that only left today and he wasn't even going to see her. Unless he forced himself on her.

Resigning himself to having tan-coloured knees for the rest of his life, Kaoru got out of the bath and picked up his clothes. Then he had a better idea and wrapped his towel around his waist instead, walking down the landing to bang on Ellie's door.

"Yes?" She opened the door, eyes and hair wild. She looked like she hadn't slept.

"I haven't got any clean clothes." Kaoru lied, trying to sound as rude as possible. "I'm supposed to be your guest and you haven't even done any laundry? What kind of host are you? I'm having a hard enough time being here as it is, when my brother is lying all alone on his sick bed on the other side of the world, and I haven't even the solace of clean clothes. You're meant to be looking after me and so far all you've done is get my clothes dirty and not give me any clean ones. It's kind of bad manners, you know?"

"You'd know all about bad manners." She sighed. "Kaoru-san, I'm sorry, I don't have time for this right now. If you need clean clothes, the washing machine is in the kitchen. The instruction manual is on top." She added, correctly guessing he wouldn't have used one before. With that she shut the door. Kaoru looked at it, stunned. Had Ellie just stood up to him? It seemed almost impossible. Still, if she was getting fed up, it couldn't take much more to get her to lose her temper and send him home. He just had to needle her a little more.

"Hey." He shouted through the door. "I'm worried about Hikaru and missing him a lot, you know. You could be a little more sympathetic!"

"Hikaru-san only has the chicken pox." She answered, flatly. "You'll be able to go home soon. My parents have been gone for over a year now."

Kaoru didn't answer. For the first time, he wondered if that fact bothered her. Then he realised what time he had seen on the clock behind her when she had opened her door. Victoria would be here any minute.

He dashed back to the bathroom to get dressed. Annoying Ellie would have to wait. Surely it couldn't take long now. All he had to do was nag her to do laundry and ironing and wait until she did to reveal he had enough clothes to last a month. Then she would hate him for sure.

*

For the first time, Kaoru felt he might actually be able to like England, given enough time. This was closer to what he had imagined when he had said in the past he wanted to holiday here. The sun was shining properly and it was pleasantly warm. Strolling along Worcester's canals, under old stone bridges, stopping occasionally to look at flowers or a plaque to a great fisherman or markers showing how high the river had flooded, he could almost ignore the cars zooming around the roundabouts and car parks nearby. There were swans on the canal and boats of all kinds. His companion saw him looking at them.

"Want to take a boat ride?" Victoria asked.

"Sure." He answered, and they went to join the queue for a boat trip. There wasn't much to see, but it was pleasant and relaxing as they floated along in the sun, and conversation flowed easily between them. Here, Kaoru thought, was a kindred spirit- not like Ellie, who he seemed to have nothing in common with. If only his parents had arranged for him to stay with Victoria instead...

"Kaoru, look!" She said excitedly, pointing at a narrow boat opposite. These boats fascinated Kaoru, the long thin brightly painted boats that people could live on. It seemed impossible to him, but he loved them all the same. The one Victoria was pointing at had its name on the side like the rest, but this time in kanji. "It's written in Japanese! What does it say?"

Truthfully, Kaoru didn't have a clue. It was written in Chinese rather than Japanese. Had Ellie made that mistake, he would have teased her brutally, but he couldn't bring himself to do it to Victoria. So instead of telling the truth, he said "It's called...um... The Summer Serenade."

"That sounds nice." Victoria sighed, resting her head on his shoulder. "Kind of... romantic."

Kaoru was about to reply when he noticed the Chinese tourists on the other side of the boat smirking at him knowingly. He blushed and said nothing, feeling the warm weight of her head nuzzling into his neck the rest of the journey.

*

They walked along the high street, but underneath the old fashioned buildings, all swirling Victorian stone work, were just ordinary shops, the international brands Kaoru had in Japan. Smiling, Victoria suggested they visited the Shambles.

Kaoru wasn't familiar with the word shambles, but when she explained what it meant he wasn't sure why he would have any reason to go to a place that was in such ruin. Still, it was Victoria, and when she was leading him by the hand he couldn't stop himself from following.

Not far from the high street, too close to be believed, was a place like stepping back in time. Narrow cobbled streets wound between buildings Victoria said were hundreds of years old, the black and white kind with beams, where the top floor was bigger than the bottom floor because they couldn't get it to balance any other way. There were tea shops and old fashioned sweet shops and all sorts of proper English things tucked away in there, and Kaoru finally felt as if he was enjoying himself. Stooping slightly to get under the low door frame, he ducked into the sweet shop, looking at all the old confectionary standing on shelves in jars.

"I love places like this." Victoria twittered. "It's like pick and mix but more fun."

"How do I order?" Kaoru asked.

"You just ask for what you want. It's sold by weight." She looked at the jars herself. "Hmm... I'll have a hundred grams of chocolate raisins, please."

"It's alright." Kaoru said as the shopkeeper reached up for the jar. "Don't worry about it. I'll just have a hundred grams of everything. Oh, and two sticks of rock and five of those sugar mice things."

"Kaoru!" Victoria was shocked. "It's two pounds for every hundred grams! And the sugar mice are a pound each! Do you know how much it will cost?!"

"Do you know how much money I have?" Kaoru answered.

She laughed. "Fine, if you want to spend it all on sweeties, go ahead. You're going to be sick."

"We can share." Kaoru shrugged. "I'll take the rest home for Hikaru."

"Aww... that's so nice..." She wrapped her arm around him and squeezed him in a half hug as the shop keeper got to work. "You're a sweet guy, Kaoru."

He smirked. "Yeah. With all this lot, I'll be a _really _sweet guy."

Victoria blinked, then shook her head in exasperation. "A bad pun. Now you're really British."

They left the shop some time later, Kaoru carrying a carrier bag with many little separate paper bags inside so the sweets didn't get mixed up. Inside those bags were Pear drops, fruit drops, cherry drops, rhurbarbs and custards, toffee bon bons, strawberry bon bons, lemon bon bons, jelly teddies, jazz drops, white jazz drops, nut clusters, sherbet lemons, cola cubes, silver ball bearings, white mice, pink pigs, chocolate raisins, chocolate buttons, white chocolate buttons, strawberry and white chocolate buttons, smarties, minstrels, fizzy strawberries, jelly cherries, fizzy keys, foam snakes, foam mushrooms, cola bottles, fizzy cola bottles, milk bottles, strawberry milkshake bottles, jelly rings, orange boiled sweets, lemon boiled sweets, pear boiled sweets, raspberry boiled sweets, strawberry boiled sweets, strawberry shoelaces, lime shoelaces, fizzy shoelaces, flying saucers, mini eggs, tooti fruiti, fruit rock pieces, mint humbugs, candy pebbles and wine gums; as well as the rock and the sugar mice.

It had been a well-stocked sweet shop. Not so much any more. He was so excited over them that Victoria didn't have the heart to point out that more than half of what he had bought had probably been ripped off a Haribo recipe in the 1970s. There were only so many traditional English sweet recipes still in existence, after all.

"We still have some time before the last bus home." Victoria said. "Why don 't we go see a film?"

"Sounds good." Kaoru agreed. "At least we'll have plenty to eat."

She laughed again and lead the way. It was such a pretty sound.

*

They ended up watching what was a fairly standard rom-com, but after such a nice day and in such good company he couldn't help but enjoy it. They laughed a lot, not at the jokes in the film but at the comments the other passed on how stupid or rubbish it was. The film had every cliché in the book, and yet Kaoru knew it would be one of his best cinema experiences. It felt good to be beside her, knowing she was paying more attention to him than to the film.

He had pulled a bag of sweets out at random and it had turned out to be the candy pebbles. They chewed their way through happily, until Kaoru realised there was only one left in the bag.

"There's only one left?" He frowned. "I should save it for Hikaru. Unless we go back for more..."

"I only just ate one." Victoria replied, quietly. "Maybe you can still taste it."

With that, she reached up and pressed her lips to his.

On screen, the romantic music swelled.

*

A/N: You know, Kaoru must have spent about £100 in that sweet shop. D: Did everyone recognise all the different kinds of sweets? It reminds me of childhood... At time of writing, he spent about $156.12, according to the currency convertor. Actually, I'm surprised, I didn't realise the pound was quite so weak... although, saying that, when the Euro first came in I remember the conversion was about 1 Euro to 60p. Then it was 75p, then 80p, now 87p. Whoo, recession... although if there wasn't a recession I might have been able to get a job by now so I wouldn't be sitting here, you know, writing bad fanfiction. XD Swings and roundabouts, as they say...

Next time is the aftermath of the kiss. How will Kaoru react?! Dun dun duuuuuuuuun, etc.


	5. Tinned Soup

A/N: I hope this chapter flows okay. Normally, as the chapters are so short, I'll write one in one sitting. This time I had to stop and start a little... I hope it's okay. In the meantime, let's pick up where we left off, with Victoria kissing Kaoru outside the cinema. Standard disclaimer applies.

Chapter Five- Tinned Soup

Kaoru hadn't exactly been expecting Victoria to just kiss him like that, but it wasn't unpleasant. His first instinct was that Hikaru would be really mad at him for having fun, and he should push her off, but then again, why should he? It wasn't like he was kissing Haruhi and betraying his brother. Victoria was pretty and funny and he was attracted to her, so why shouldn't he? He leant in closer and kissed her back and he had no regrets.

Then he realised her hand was sliding lower, towards the waistband on his trousers. He pulled away gently then, feeling oddly emasculated. Surely, if anything, he should be the one going too far for her, not the other way around. Still, it was a bit much for the first date. She probably hadn't done it on purpose.

But then, why was she looking so disappointed? To make up for it, he leant in and kissed her briefly again. She smiled and took his hand.

"The film is over." She said. "We'd better go back, or Grey-chan is going to be yelling at you for being late."

"Right." Kaoru said, getting up, aware that he was grinning stupidly, but unable to stop himself. He was holding hands with a pretty girl, the day had been perfect, and for the first time he felt as if perhaps he could have fun on his own, have his own life as well as the one he shared with Hikaru. He was on top of the world.

*

"Grey-chan!" He yelled, coming through the door. She hadn't answered it when he had rung the bell and he had been forced to resort to trying to remember where she'd told him the spare key was kept. He had eventually found it hidden inside a plant pot, underneath a smaller pot. That seemed slightly excessive to him. He had entered and found the house in darkness. Perhaps whatever she had been doing that day had caused her to leave. However, just as he thought this, he heard snuffling sounds from the living room. He went in, flicking on the light. Ellie jumped, startled.

"Oh, Kaoru-san!" She said, rubbing her sleeve over her eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you ringing the bell."

"What are you crying about?" Kaoru asked, annoyed. He had wanted to tell her about Victoria.

"Nothing, it's just the light coming on so suddenly making my eyes water."

"Quit lying, it's irritating." Kaoru sighed and came and sat down next to her. "I heard you crying the other night, too. What's up?"

"Ah, Kaoru-san! I'm sorry if I disturbed you, I didn't mean to!"

"It's not a matter of being disturbed, I want to know what's wrong."

"It's nothing, really..." She sniffed, then saw he would not accept this. "I just had some bad news today. My mom's latest designs have been rejected by Top Shop and Selfridges, and they're our main hosts..."

"Huh? Did your parents call while I was out?" Kaoru asked. His mom had told him to thank the Grahams as soon as they called; it seemed he had missed it. At least the designs he had seen in Ellie's room finally made sense. He didn't think she would have done them herself, with her complete lack of fashion sense. They must have been designs her mom had sent home.

"Yeah..."

"So are they coming home to sort this out?"

"No..." She shook her head, about to start crying again. "There's no point. They're just going to keep stocking the old designs until next season...but the customers will want something new and..." Tears were falling down her face again.

"Hey, hey." Kaoru said, gently. "That's nothing to cry about. Your parents are in Paris, right? Your mom is probably just being influenced too much by the French fashion scene and that niche is already filled. I bet come next season she'll have plenty of good ideas. You'll be fine. It's just a little hiccup, nothing to cry over."

"Mmm, you're right..." She rubbed her eyes again. "Sorry for being stupid... I'll go make you some dinner."

"I'm not really hungry." Kaoru said. "Don't worry about it, I'll just grab some toast or something later."

"Okay... well, I'll make some tea then... I need to get your laundry out anyway." She answered, heading into the kitchen and filling the kettle. Kaoru stared around the kitchen. There was something different here, if only he could work out what. Then he realised it wasn't what it looked like, but the smell. Ellie always scrubbed the kitchen surfaces down after she'd cooked with some sort of cleaning spray, the scent of which always hung around for hours afterward.

"Haven't you eaten yet?" He asked.

"Yes, I ate earlier."

"But..." Something suddenly occurred to Kaoru. She always ate breakfast before he got up, lunch in her room, dinner either earlier or later than him, or so she said. But apart from the cake she had eaten his first night here, and the odd snack here and there, he hadn't seen her eat at all. He looked at her more closely, and was stunned to see she had lost noticeable weight even in the time he had been there, let alone compared to the picture her parents had shown him the previous summer. But she didn't look healthy for it, far from it. She looked dishevelled and shrunken and...grey. How had he not noticed? "Hey." He said. "You... _did _eat, right?"

"Yes."

"Liar. You never eat anything. There are better ways to diet, you know."

"I'm not dieting!"

"Then what? You're anorexic?"

"No..."

"...You're really not?"

"No." Ellie shook her head fiercely. "I'm really not. Please don't worry, Kaoru-san. I just... haven't been feeling very well..."

Kaoru wasn't convinced- how long could she possibly have been ill for?- but decided to stop pushing it. She did look rather red in the face. He had thought it was just from the crying, but... He slapped a hand roughly to her forehead.

"You have a fever?" He said, surprised. "Why didn't you say something?" He knew if it had been him he would have been complaining all day and stayed warm and comfortable in bed, making her bring him things. He and Hikaru had always done that. That was what you were _supposed _to do when you were sick. "You know, you shouldn't have been running round working all day, or whatever you were doing."

"I'm sorry, Kaoru-san." She said, taking his laundry out of the tumble drier and starting to fold it. "I just had so much to do today, and I didn't want to leave you without any clean clothes, I couldn't just laze around in bed all day. Besides, it's just a little fever, it's really nothing." She shook out one of his shirts, looking at it critically. "It's no use." She said cheerfully. "This one is going to have to be ironed." She walked over to a small cupboard, pulling out a fold down ironing board and nearly falling over as she did so. Clearly her fever was a lot worse than she pretended.

"For goodness sake, Grey-chan!" Kaoru snapped, pulling the shirt off her and slamming the ironing board back into place. "Just go to bed and sleep it off already! I'll bring you some soup up or something."

"Oh, no, Kaoru-san, you're a guest, I couldn't possibly-"

"Go! You saying 'it's nothing, it's nothing' is getting kind of annoying. Upstairs, now!"

She smiled slightly and nodded wearily, leaving the kitchen. Kaoru waited till he heard the sound of her feet on the stairs and then stuck his head out of the door to make sure she didn't collapse half way up. He wasn't sure she'd make it, and the last thing he wanted was to be carrying her up the stairs. Thankfully, he saw her disappear over the summit at last, and went back to the kitchen.

"Man, what a troublesome girl..." He muttered ill-naturedly to himself, ransacking the cupboard for something easy to cook. Eventually he found some tinned soup which could just go in the microwave. A few more minutes of turning the drawer upside down he found a tin opener. Then he realised he had no idea how to apply one to the other. His family's chef would have been _horrified _at the idea of using anything from a tin, and even if he had Kaoru would never have had any occasion to use one. After a few unsuccessful attempts, he gave up and tried stabbing it with a knife, then a bread knife, then a meat cleaver. Growing more and more frustrated when this did nothing but dent the can, he called Victoria.

"Hi." She said in her lovely, excited voice. "How are you? You know, I had a great time today." She purred. Kaoru immediately felt himself smiling back. Just hearing her voice made him feel better.

"Me too." He said. "But hey, listen, I need a favour. Grey-chan's managed to get a fever while we were out."

"Oh, really?" Victoria said. "Poor thing, it must be bad if she's actually admitted it. She's probably been feeling rough for days, but she just pushes herself and pushes herself and gets worse and worse..."

"That sounds about right." Kaoru sighed. "So anyway, I'm trying to heat her some soup up but I can't get the stupid tin open."

"Oh no, really?" Victoria said. "What happened to her tin opener?"

"I have it, but I can't work out how it works." Kaoru pouted. Victoria laughed. "Hey! It's not my fault I've never used one before!" But he wasn't annoyed. She had such a beautiful, lady-like laugh. Next to her, Ellie's hiccupping giggles may have well been the cries of a diseased donkey.

"I'm sorry, Kaoru, it's just so adorable..." She said, giggling. Kaoru felt his heart flutter slightly, then tried to stop himself from being so ridiculous. Man, this girl had a hold on him. "Okay, let me talk you through it..."

She did, and between them and a few unsuccessful attempts Kaoru finally got the tin opened.

"Hooray!" Victoria cheered. "Now all you have to do is put the soup in the microwave, shut the door, press the time button until in reads 2:30 and push start, okay?"

"Got it." Kaoru said. "Thanks for your help."

"You're welcome. I'll come check on you both tomorrow, I don't want you getting bored while Ellie is lounging in bed coughing and hacking."

"Great." Kaoru smiled. "Look forward to seeing you."

"You too! Bye, love you!" She made kissing noises down the phone and hung up.

Kaoru put his phone down more slowly, aware he was blushing vividly, as was natural to those with red hair and pale skin. He knew he was acting like a pre-teen getting their first kiss, but he couldn't help it. He didn't feel like a host around her. He felt like an inexperienced loser, the kind who could never talk to girls so girls never talked to him. But she didn't think that. He grinned to himself and waited for his stomach to untangle before putting the soup in the microwave, carefully setting the time and pushing go.

Tono would be jealous, Kaoru thought, of all this commoner experience. He would have loved the chance to using the commoner time-saving microwave, because the poor were so busy they couldn't spend longer than five minutes on dinner. Or maybe it was to save on the gas bill for the stove?

Still, the microwave certainly was noisy, and the smell was vile. Not only was there the hum of the plate rotating, but a good deal of sparking and crackling. When smoke started to pour out from around the door, Kaoru began to suspect he had done something wrong. Now which was the door release button...?

There was a loud bang. Kaoru dived away from the microwave as the door finally blew open, spattering red-hot soup all over the kitchen along with shards of what he suspected used to be the can. He stood up slowly. The inside of the microwave was black and smouldering. He wasn't convinced it would ever work again. Had he turned up the power instead of the time?

He looked at the mess of the kitchen. Ellie could clean this lot up when she was better.

"Kaoru-san?!" Ellie ran into the kitchen in her pyjamas. "Are you alright?!" She looked around, surveying the damage. ".....did you explode my microwave?"

"...Maybe a little." Kaoru admitted. "But it's not my fault! I just did what Victoria told me!"

Ellie poked at some soup tin shrapnel with her slipper, examining it. "Kaoru-san," she asked pleasantly. "Did you by any chance put the whole tin in the microwave?"

"Yeah, why?"

Ellie looked at him, his innocent ignorance, and suddenly threw back her head and laughed. It really was like an undignified donkey. She laughed until tears started to fall down her face again. Kaoru shifted uncomfortably.

"Okay, okay, I get it!" He said, annoyed. "Rich guy doesn't know how to use a microwave, ha ha ha!"

"I am sorry, Kaoru-san." She tried to get her laughter under control, and dissolved into a coughing fit instead. The smoke-filled kitchen probably wasn't helping her cold. "For future reference, microwaves don't like metal."

"Noted. Now go to bed!"

"But... I need to clean up in here..."

"Ellie..." He growled. "You need to go to sleep. Go on already!"

"...alright." She smiled again, and headed upstairs. Kaoru sighed, filled a glass with water and picked his way gingerly through the shards and soup puddles to take it up to her room.

"Thank you, Kaoru-san." She said, as he set it down on her bedside table. "You're very kind."

"Yeah, yeah..." He muttered. This wasn't going to plan. It was fine to be the nice one at home, but he had to remember to be mean here or she'd never send him away. If he even wanted her to any more. He missed Hikaru, but Victoria...

"I mean it, Kaoru-san." Ellie said. "You pretend to be mean, but you aren't. And... I'd be happy if you'd call me Ellie again."

"What?" Kaoru blinked, cursing that she saw right through him. Then he realised he had called her Ellie. Drat. "...Grey-chan suits you fine." He said, moving towards the door. "And I'm only nice when you're sick."

"You're a bad liar." She said, coughing.

"Just go to sleep." He said, unable to think of a better retort. He left, knowing it was over. With that stubborn belief, Ellie was never going to throw him out now. Kaoru wasn't even sure he wanted her to, he wanted to make the most of his time with Victoria. He had to tell Hikaru.

*

_"I kissed Victoria."_

After Kaoru had said that, Hikaru hadn't heard much else of their conversation. He had replied and they had talked about other things and said goodbye as always, but Hikaru knew that all that effort pretending he was okay with it had probably been worthless anyway because Kaoru probably wouldn't be fooled. Unless he was too busy with his new girlfriend of course.

Hikaru was not okay with it. Not in the slightest. Here he was, stuck in bed all day, weak as a kitten, itchy as anything, and only getting worse; separated from his brother and comforted only by the idea Kaoru was as miserable as he was- but no, his brother- his own brother!- was off having fun and picking up girls! But it was more than that, of course. It was the end of everything, Hikaru knew, because he wouldn't be the most important person to Kaoru any more. They would start going their separate ways. That scared him more than anything. It was a betrayal, plain and simple. Kaoru was going on ahead of him and not looking back.

What if he wanted to stay in England with her? He couldn't just leave! But then, if he came back and it wasn't where he really wanted to be...

Hikaru punched his pillow in frustration. It wasn't fair! How could Kaoru do this?! It was only supposed to be for a few weeks, and then everything could go back to normal and they could do things together, at their own pace. But no, just two weeks after he'd left, Kaoru had raced off ahead and left Hikaru behind. It wasn't right and it wasn't fair...

Only, if he was happy...

Hikaru growled in frustration and buried his face in the pillow. He was mad at Kaoru, really mad, but he felt like the worst person in the world for it. Kaoru wouldn't have been mad at him. Kaoru would have done all he could to help him, encouraged him to step out into his own life. But then, he had always been the mature one.

Or maybe he just wanted to get rid of Hikaru?

No. How could he think that about his own brother? That wasn't true. Was it?

"I'm the worst..." Hikaru groaned. "Or he is! No, definitely me..."

"Um..." Someone said. "Are you okay or should I come back when you're done arguing with yourself?"

Hikaru bolted upright, embarrassed. "Hi, Haruhi..." He said.

It wasn't fair. Kaoru had been sent away in case he managed to catch chicken pox twice, but his friends who had gotten through it before had been allowed to come visit. At least this didn't include Tamaki, who it seemed had had so little contact with other children when he was young that he had never caught it himself. He had still been calling every day, and that was exhausting enough. Although he meant well in his efforts to cheer Hikaru up, he was high-maintenance. Mori had never had it either- who could imagine him ever being ill anyway?- and it seemed Kyouya's family was prone to getting it several times each too. Apparently the Host Club collectively was weak against the deadly threat of chicken pox. This only left Honey and Haruhi, and both visited regularly, either together or in pairs. Haruhi came the most often.

"Hello." She said, coming and sitting down by his bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Not too bad..." Hikaru said, coughing mostly for affect. At least the only complication had been a fever, but it was a bad one that just wouldn't seem to go away. Frowning, Haruhi pressed a hand to his forehead.

"You're still as hot as before." She said. "Can't those fancy doctors of yours give you anything?"

"Nothing they haven't tried already." Hikaru groaned.

"Never mind." Haruhi said, comfortingly, patting his arm. "You'll be up and around before you know it. Here, I brought some books for you."

"Oh, thanks." Hikaru tried to inject some enthusiasm into his voice. Last time she had said this, they had all turned out to be very long and difficult novels or even text books, because she thought they were 'interesting' and would 'keep him going'. He hadn't read more than a few paragraphs. Haruhi smiled knowingly and handed him a bag full of comics and glossy magazines.

"I got my dad to help me pick them." Haruhi said. "I don't know much about fashion."

"Haruhi, you don't know _anything_ about fashion." Hikaru snorted, not unkindly, flicking through one of the magazines. It had seemed Ranka had attacked them with some highlighter pens, drawing pink hearts around outfits he liked and writing witty comments about the rest. He laughed.

"That's better." Haruhi said. "I've been a little worried, you know."

"A little."

"Slightly." Haruhi confirmed, pulling his hand away from his cheek as he went to scratch a spot. "Don't do that, you'll get scars."

"But it's itchy..." He whined.

"Well, when I had chicken pox, my mom told me every time I got too itchy I should scratch my pillow instead and then I'd feel better!" Haruhi smiled, clearly fond of this nugget of commoner wisdom from her mother.

"Um... right..." Hikaru obediently scratched the pillow so she didn't get offended. Shockingly, it wasn't really much help. "....I just got a call off Kaoru."

"Oh... how's he doing? Have he and Graham-chan made friends yet?"

"Nope, but he's been making out with one of her friends."

"What?" Hikaru filled her in on what happened. "But... it's good that he's having fun, right?"

"I guess." Hikaru sighed, disgruntled.

"....it's not good?" Haruhi asked, gently.

"Well, he's not meant to be having fun!" Hikaru said. "It wouldn't be so bad if I was there too, but he's off having a good time and I'm stuck here! And... and anyway..."

"You're worried she'll be more important to him than you are?"

"....I guess. But if he's happy, it's pretty selfish of me, right?"

"Yes, it is." Haruhi agreed, with customary bluntness. Hikaru wondered why he'd opened up to her at all. Seeing his face, her tone softened a little. "But it's natural. Everyone gets jealous, especially if you don't think he's missing you as much as you miss him. But... you know... love's not an apple, it's an apple tree."

"You've lost me."

"Dad used to say it sometimes. If everyone's love was an apple-"

"Why an apple?"

"It's a metaphor, okay?"

"But how is an apple like love?"

"It's not, but that's not the point."

"Pretty rubbish metaphor then."

"Would you just be quiet and listen?" She said, irritated. "Look, if everyone's love was an apple, it would have to be divided up. So maybe first you'd just split your apple up between your parents and your siblings. But then your friends would get a slice, and then maybe the person you fell in love with would get a slice, and then your kids and their kids and the more people you cared about the smaller you'd have to slice your apple and the less everyone would get."

"So you're saying I get less apple now he has a girl?" Hikaru asked, annoyed.

"No, I'm saying it's _not _like that. Don't think of love like an apple, think of it like an apple tree. Every time someone new comes into your life, a new branch and some new apples grow. It doesn't take anything away from anyone else. You still have your apple, Hikaru, it's just this girl has one too."

"....I still think that's a pretty useless metaphor." Hikaru teased. Haruhi slapped his wrist lightly.

"It's good advice." She said. "You should listen to it. I mean, if there was a girl you liked, Kaoru wouldn't get upset, would he?"

"No... there is a girl I like... he's all for it."

"Really?" Haruhi seemed a little surprised that he had such feelings. "Well, maybe you should use this as a good excuse to follow his lead and tell her."

"Alright." Hikaru said, pulling her close and kissing her before he lost his nerve.

*

A/N: Oh my, could it be a subplot? :O Yes, I always wanted to show at least some of what is happening to Hikaru, but the main focus will stay with Kaoru and Victoria and Ellie. There's plenty still to come! You know, this is the second chapter in a row I've ended with a kiss... oops.


	6. Picnic Blanket

A/N: Disclaimer as standard!

Chapter Six: Picnic Blanket

Kaoru checked on Ellie several times that night, mostly to make sure she hadn't decided to get up and clean or bake or repair the roof or whatever else. Sometimes when he went in, she was half-awake and he withdrew quickly, embarrassed. More often she would be sleeping fitfully, tossing restlessly. He was woken once by hearing her screaming and groaning in the next room, some sort of nightmare made worse by the fever. He was tempted to put the pillow over his head and ignore her, but his conscience wouldn't allow him to. She was Victoria's friend, after all. Groaning himself, he dragged himself out of bed- again- and went into her room.

"Hey, you okay?"

She didn't reply other than with some half-sobs as she writhed around on the bed, trying to get away from some unseen assailant. Kaoru wasn't sure what to do in a situation like this. He felt her forehead, still hot and sweating. He should have known it was worse than she'd made out. Still, in his experience, the worse a fever was the quicker it would wear itself out. She would be fine this time tomorrow. In the meantime, however, were the half-delirious nightmares.

She cried out in terror again, and Kaoru couldn't help but feel a stab of pity for her. He sat down on the bed next to her.

"Oi." He said. "Ssh."

She didn't.

He sighed. "C'mon, Grey-chan, only a dream, nothing to be frightened of." He took her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. Her fingers clenched his of their own accord. Her hands were shaking. "What's going on in there, huh?" Kaoru asked, pushing her hair off her face with his free hand. This seemed to sooth her, so he continued until she settled down, glad she hadn't woken up to see what he was doing. Her sleeping was still troubled, but she wasn't yelling out any more, so at least he'd be able to sleep.

Kaoru checked on her again at dawn. The fever seemed to have gone down, leaving only a slight temperature behind it. Ellie herself had settled into a deep and somehow relieved sleep. It looked like he'd finally get some peace. Satisfied, Kaoru went back to bed to grab a few more hours himself.

He dreamt about Victoria. The details were vague, but Kaoru was back home, back at Ouran. He was missing her and then she showed up. He was happy to see her, so happy, glad that they could be together again properly, not just some long distance relationship. He could hold her and kiss her and be near to her; and he did just that. Only then he realised it wasn't his arms around her, it was Hikaru's, and they looked at him in surprise, wondering what he was talking about. Victoria had never been his girlfriend, Ellie was, that was why he was getting so fat, because she kept baking stuff, stuff she wouldn't eat herself because of her diet, but then he realised it was more than that, he was literally taking on her fat, it was being pumped from her into him while he slept, and she was looking for him...

He was awoken by Victoria shaking his shoulder. Never had he been so grateful- and confused- to see someone first thing in the morning.

"Welcome to the real world." She joked as he sat up. "You were fast asleep, weren't you? I rang the bell again and again and nobody came, so I let myself in."

"What, should I have locked the door last night or something?"

"No, sweetie, Ellie must have done it before she went up. Her parents gave me a key for while they were away, in case something happened." She kissed his cheek quickly and headed for the door. "Get dressed and come down, okay? We're going out for lunch."

"Oh, um, right!" Kaoru said, suddenly realising he slept without a shirt, which meant this whole time she had been looking at his chest. He showed flesh all the time in the Host Club, but this was the first time he'd been embarrassed about it. He must really like this girl, even though he hardly knew her yet. But oh, how he wanted to.

Love at first sight was finally starting to make sense.

*

"Haruhi? Haruhi, please open the door... tell daddy what's wrong..."

She had to answer him sometime. Haruhi lifted her head from the pillow and called back. "I'm really fine, dad. I just have a lot of work to get on with, so please leave me alone."

"Alright..." Ranka sighed, unconvinced. "But you have to at least come out to eat dinner later."

"Okay dad. I'll be there."

Ranka sighed again and left her in peace. Haruhi sat up, shaking herself sternly. She couldn't just stay in here moping and worrying. That wouldn't solve anything. But she really wasn't sure what to do. She hadn't been expecting Hikaru to just kiss her like that. She hadn't realised he had any such feelings, especially not for her. She had just pulled away and run without thinking, she was so surprised. How had that made him feel? Had she been unintentionally been leading him on all this time? What if he hated her now?

To her surprise, she found her eyes were slightly moist, the beginning of tears. She hadn't cried for years. She didn't want Hikaru to hate her. She wanted to be his friend. But was that all she wanted? He obviously wanted more, but did she?

She didn't know. That was the worst thing. Every other boy who had asked her out she had felt able to reject outright, so was this a sign? Or was it just because they were friends?

She didn't know how to answer any of those questions, or how to answer him.

*

"You're not going to die if we leave you on your own, are you?"

"Kaoru-san, no! I'm really fine now!" Ellie smiled. "My fever is all gone, I'm just going to sleep a little longer anyway. You guys go have fun."

"You heard the girl." Victoria said. "Let's go have fun!"

"Sounds good." Kaoru smiled. He had checked with Ellie, his conscience was clear, now he could go out for a picnic lunch with Victoria without any guilt. The sun wasn't exactly shining- he wondered if it ever did in this country- but although the sky was overcast and white with cloud it didn't look like rain and the weather was warm. It wasn't that nice a day, but when it was lunch alone with Victoria, it would have been perfect if it was pouring. It was hard to believe he'd known her less than a month.

They walked together, hand in hand, out of the Grahams' cottage and through a small spinney of trees. When he held both her arms to help her across a small stream, she leant in and kissed him, and he felt as if he was the most important guy in the world. Finally, they came to a place where a great tree had fallen, slanted at a peculiar angle, making a triangle of earth and tree and sky. With the weak English light filtering though the gap, it seemed to be in a spotlight. Originally they had been intending to go all the way through the copse and into the meadow on the other side, but this spot was too picturesque to pass by. They spread the blanket in the gap between the fallen tree and the others holding it up, and with the moss and ivy hanging down around them, they must have been almost hidden from view as they ate and talked and laughed.

In the end, though, the food was eaten and hours later even the talk dwindled, until they sat together in silence, leaning on one another.

"...it's so pretty here." Victoria said.

"So are you." Kaoru said, as it seemed to be what she was expecting. Besides, it was true.

"Kaoru..." She sighed, taking his hand. "What's going on with us? I mean... are we dating now?"

"I thought we were..."

"Good." She said, snuggling against him. "I'm glad. I was worried you weren't serious."

"Me too." Kaoru said. "But... I'll be going back to Japan sometime."

"I know..." She sighed. "But... we can e-mail, and phone, and visit... we'll make it work somehow. Maybe I could do some modelling for your mom, then I could stay longer."

"Maybe."

"I could make it big in Japan, right? Ellie told me they like English girls there. So I could be in all the magazines and stuff, support myself. I could transfer to your school, too."

"Sure." Kaoru said, cautiously, wondering if she was serious. "Only... I think my mom has all her models right now. For this season, anyway."

"Any English ones?"

"Um, no."

"Well then," She smirked, shuffling around until she was straddling his lap. "Why don't I show you why we're so popular?"

She then started to kiss him, arms wrapped around his neck and legs round his waist, sitting on his crossed legs. He kissed back at first, but then she was getting more and more in a fervour, kissing harder, running her hands over his back and tangling her fingers in his hair. He simply couldn't keep up. Then she was arching her back and pushing him down onto the blanket, and she was kissing his neck...

"Woah... hey... woah, hold up." Kaoru said, pushing her shoulders, gentle but firm. "Slow down there. English girls aren't supposed to do that kind of thing. You're supposed to be all prim and proper, right?"

"I'm half American." She said, seductively, smirking and leaning down to kiss him again. He shifted out from under her, sitting up.

"Okay..." he said. "Okay... that's enough, you know? Don't rush things."

"........Kaoru, are you mad at me now?" She whispered, tears pooling in her eyes. "I thought... I should be a proper girlfriend..."

"Who said you weren't?" Kaoru asked, gently, lifting her chin and kissing her briefly, chastely. "Let's just not do it all at once, okay? Come on, let's get out of here."

He helped her up, then he let go of her hand and they walked in silence until they went their separate ways. Kaoru tried to tell himself he wasn't freaked out by this development. It didn't work.

When he entered the cottage, he knew Ellie was feeling better immediately because the Phantom of the Opera soundtrack was blaring out of the kitchen. She always had it on when she was cooking, and he was convinced he would be sick to death of it by the time he got home. If he ever met this Lloyd Webber, he'd give him a smack.

Ellie hadn't heard him come in. She was up and dressed, cheerfully checking on vegetables boiling in a pan on the stove and singing along loudly.

"_Down once more to the dungeon of my black despair, down we plunge to the prisons of my mind, down that path into darkness deep as helllllllllll- _lo!"

"Hello." Kaoru replied, smirking. "I see you're feeling better."

"Yes! Much! Even when things go badly there's no point being depressed!" She said, apparently not realising he had been referring to her fever. "And dinner is done! I don't know if you're hungry yet, but if you like you can put it in the fridge for later."

"I'll have it now." Kaoru said. He wanted to make sure she ate something.

"Okie dokie." She answered, putting it out as the CD came to an end and peace descended. She gave him a plateful and sat down opposite him. "I ate earlier." She said.

Kaoru raised an eyebrow, fetched another plate and scraped half of his large portion onto it. This girl seemed to like to feed up everyone except herself while the fever seemed to have left her thinner and more dishevelled than ever.

"Eat." He said, unimpressed. She pouted like a petulant child, but obediently began picking at the food.

"How was your outing with Victoria?" She asked.

"Oh... it was good. Really good." Kaoru answered evasively.

"....you don't seem sure."

"She's just... very forward." Kaoru said, reluctantly. "It surprised me... I'm not sure I like her being so... predatory."

"That's just who she is, Kaoru-san." Ellie shook her head. "...Has she asked about doing work for your mother?"

"H-how did you know?" Kaoru demanded. "Are you trying to suggest she's just using me?!"

He ignored the fact that he wouldn't have jumped to that conclusion if he hadn't been thinking it himself.

"No, no." Ellie waved her hands anxiously. "I've really nothing against Victoria, Kaoru-san, she's a good friend and I'm sure she'd be a good girlfriend too. She'll do everything she's supposed to. It's just... she knows which side her bread is buttered."

Kaoru raised his eyebrow again at the metaphor. "And what does that mean?"

"It just means... she is a good and loyal friend, but she wouldn't be your friend if it wasn't worthwhile for her to do so."

Unbidden, an image of Kyouya popped into Kaoru's mind. He forced the thought away. No way was Victoria as heartless as that.

"....so what do I do?" He asked.

"That's up to you, Kaoru-san. You can be like me and accept her for who she is and the price tag that comes with her relationship, or you can take a stand and say it's wrong or manipulative."

"Is it wrong and manipulative?" Kaoru asked, doubtfully. "If she's doing everything you'd want her to? You know, still fulfilling the role?"

"That's for you to decide for yourself, Kaoru-san." Ellie shrugged. "It's doing the right thing for the wrong reasons. Whether it's right or wrong is down to you."

"And what do you think?"

"I think it's probably wrong, in this case."

"....but you're her friend."

"Yes." Ellie agreed, taking the plates away to wash up. "But I think she probably needs one. As do I."

Kaoru couldn't decide which side of the fence he fell on. Was it right or wrong? Was she using him, if she was doing everything he asked of her? Asked of her and then some. He blushed at the thought. He knew one thing for sure- he didn't want _that_. Not yet.

"...I don't know." He admitted, eventually. "But it's not like I can just tell her to go away till I do."

"...why don't we go away?" Ellie asked, scrubbing away.

"Huh?"

"Kaoru-san," She said, turning with sponge still in hand and grinning broadly. "Let's go on a trip!"

*

A/N: I guess at this point you could say 'end of part one'? It's not divided into parts anywhere except my head, though; that's just how I think of it. Part two is the trip-escaping-Victoria, a tour of some of England. Not all of it, though. I wonder why not. :O Join me next time for a change of location. Time to leave the Malverns behind~


	7. Seven Cats and Seven Kits

A/N: A double-length chapter today. I don't quite know why, but somehow this chapter became really long... I'm sorry it was so long in coming. I kept saying 'I will finish it today' and it never happened, no matter how hard I tried. I blame my sister showing me songs about ducks on youtube. Also, for giving me too many ideas for this chapter . :P Standard disclaimer applies, both for Ouran and 'Wherever You Will Go' by the Calling.

  
Chapter Seven- Seven Cats and Seven Kits

-_So lately, been wondering, who will be there to take my place?-_

As tempting as it was to simply flee in the night and hope Victoria didn't notice, Kaoru felt he should at least call her first. Otherwise she would think he'd dumped her and he wasn't, exactly. He was just taking a time out. Time out to clear his head and work out if he wanted a girlfriend who would be as loving and attentive as he could wish, but only because she 'knew which side her bread was buttered'. What a weird saying. Still, Victoria was beautiful and fun to be around, and made him feel as if he were the most interesting person on the planet and he knew that once he went back to Japan he would miss her almost as much as he missed Hikaru coming here. He thought guiltily of the plan to make Ellie hate him so he could go home, and how Victoria coming into his life had put that on hold. He would have to call Hikaru right after this.

"Is it because of the picnic?" Victoria asked anxiously. "Was I too forward? Do you hate me?"

"No, maybe and no." He said. "I could never hate you. You know that. We're going on the trip so I can see more of England."

"Maybe I could come!" She said. "Oh... no, I have plans with my family this week..."

"Aww." Kaoru sighed, although secretly relieved. "It's okay, I'll see you when I get back."

"Kaoru..." She said, slowly. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? It's just all the guys I've been with before... they want that much. And I don't usually want to give that much. So, now that I do... I just got confused. I'm sorry. But you know... the fact you're such a gentleman makes me love you even more."

Kaoru tried not to blush too much, forcing the private, unacknowledged wish that he hadn't been such a gentleman _way _down inside him, where it belonged.

"I love you too." He said. It was the first time he had said those words to anyone, at least in a romantic sense. Immediately he was stuck with the worry that they had been a lie, that he somehow hadn't meant it. But he thought she was so pretty, so impossibly beautiful, no-one else made his heart pound as she did. That had to be love, didn't it?

"Then do something for me, Kaoru."

"I'll try."

"Call me Vicky."

"Okay. Vicky." Kaoru knew this was for his benefit. The English didn't place the same onus on terms of address illustrating the familiarity of the relationship. Most people here probably did call her Vicky. In Japan, he would have called her Hayden-san, maybe Victoria-chan. Calling her Vicky cast glamour over the whispered words.

"Say, 'I love you, Vicky'." She pleaded.

"I love you, Vicky." He repeated obediently, trying not to let any irritation into his voice. What was he, a trained puppy? With that, he wished her goodbye and hung up. Time to call Hikaru.

"Kaoru-san!" Ellie called. "I'm just going upstairs to the office, some important stuff just came through and I need to fax it to my dad!"

"Something wrong?" He called back.

"No, no, nothing!" She said, another of her poorly concealed lies. He frowned- clearly something _was _wrong- but put it out of his mind. He would worry about that later, once he had spoken to his brother.

*

Hikaru was feeling better. He knew he was, but there was no way he was going to act it. He still had a fever, but not nearly so bad as it had been the past few weeks. Most of the pox were gone too, although the ones left behind were still itching like mad and annoying him no end. He had started scratching them regardless. Who cared if he got scars? The girl he wanted didn't want him anyway.

Since he had kissed her like that, Haruhi had just run off. She hadn't called or come back and probably never would. Now they would have to spend the rest of their lives avoiding each other.

Stupid. Stupid Chicken pox. Stupid Kaoru, letting them ship him off and then not coming straight back. If he and Kaoru had gone ahead with their plans for the summer, he could have brought Haruhi round to the idea and this wouldn't have happened. If Kaoru had been home, he wouldn't have gone off with that English totty and then Hikaru wouldn't have been encouraged to kiss Haruhi. Stupid Kaoru. Stupid totty.

The phone rang. He picked up.

"Hi, Hikaru." Kaoru sounded very far away, in the way a voice only can when heard from the over side of the world. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine." He said, grumpily. "How's your _girlfriend_?"

"Oh, um, she's fine, she's fine." Kaoru answered, clearly not telling him something. Fine. Then Hikaru wouldn't tell him about Haruhi. "Listen, Hikaru, Grey-chan is taking me on a tour of England, see some of the sights. So I'll be in hotels and that..."

"You won't call?" Hikaru butted in, angrily. It was alright for Kaoru, who could go off and have fun without him, but he was stuck in bed with only his thoughts for company. How was that fair?

"Of course I'll call!" Kaoru seemed almost horrified. "But it'll be from all different places, so if you need me don't call the house, okay?"

"Like I'd need you." Hikaru answered, bad-naturedly.

"Hikaru... I'm sorry. Do you want me to cancel the trip?"

"No. You're far enough away. Who cares if you get a little further?"

Kaoru sighed but gave up. "Then, in that case, I'll speak to you tomorrow. Bye."

"Bye." Hikaru made sure he hung up first. He just rolling over to fake sleep and mope some more, when Haruhi came into the room. He stared at her. She said nothing, not looking at him as she came and sat down. She was blushing slightly.

"Was that Kaoru just now?" She asked. "How is he?"

"Oh, he's having a _great _time. Grey-chan is taking him off on some trip and he'll probably spend the whole time whining about how much he misses his girlfriend."

"Hikaru..." She pacified, then sighed. "...About before."

"Just forget about it, okay?" Hikaru muttered, unable to look at her. "...I don't want this to make things change between us."

"I won't forget!" She insisted. "Those are your real feelings, Hikaru, and I can't just ignore them!"

He sat up, slowly. "So what are you saying?"

She looked down at her lap. "I... I'm sorry. I don't have an answer for you yet."

"So you're rejecting me after all?"

"N-no... not exactly..." She finally looked at him. "I care a lot about you, Hikaru. I don't want to hurt you. If said yes without thinking and then it didn't work out, that's what I'd be doing. I don't want to say yes until I'm sure." He must have looked upset at this answer, because she added. "But I will definitely answer! Definitely! So please... just be a little patient for now..."

She got up and began to leave, pausing in the doorway for a parting remark.

"But... if it helps... I've never had to think about it before. "

It didn't help. As far as Hikaru was concerned, if she didn't know she wanted to right away it probably meant she didn't want to.

But then, it was Haruhi. So maybe there was some hope after all.

*

"How much further away is this place?" Kaoru grumbled. Ellie had suggested they start at the bottom of the British Isles and work their way up, but he wouldn't have agreed if he'd known how early they would have to get up, or the ridiculous amount of travelling involved. First they got a bus into Worcester. Then they got a train to Birmingham. Then they got another train to Exeter. Now they were on a coach, which smelt bad and had uncomfortable seats and was almost shaking him to pieces. Kaoru was not impressed. Ellie seemed quite content, with the headphones from her Mp3 player in her ears, tapping her foot in time. He poked her to get her attention and asked again.

"Not too much further, Kaoru-san." She smiled. "We're almost at Falmouth."

"I thought we were going to Saint Ives?"

"We are." She confirmed. "We just have to catch a bus from Falmouth."

Kaoru sighed loudly. "Grey-chan, this is way boring. Couldn't we have just flown or something?"

"Sorry, Kaoru-san. But we would have had to travel to Birmingham and could only have flown as far as Newquay anyway."

"I bet it still would have been quicker though." Kaoru huffed.

"Sorry, Kaoru-san. Here, I'll give you a puzzle."

"A puzzle?"

"It'll make the time go faster!"

"An in-flight movie on a first class flight would make the time go faster." Kaoru muttered. "Alright, fine, what is it?"

"It's a maths problem! But it only works in English, so..." She switched languages and recited "On my way to St Ives, I met a man with seven wives. The seven wives had seven sacks, the seven sacks had seven cats, the seven cats had seven kits. Kits, cats, sacks and wives, how many people were going to St Ives?"

"What kind of puzzle is that?" Kaoru asked. "Seven wives, seven sacks, seven cats, seven kittens. Twenty-eight."

"No." She smiled. "They had seven _each_."

"Oh..." He frowned in frustration. "I'll need a calculator."

With that, he got his phone out and started working. Smiling, she went back to her music.

"Two thousand eight hundred!" He declared, just as they reached Falmouth.

"Keep trying, Kaoru-san." She shook her head. "Think harder about the question."

Kaoru thought more carefully. "Oh wait, there was the guy too. So two thousand, eight hundred and one."

"No."

"And you, so two thousand eight hundred and two?"

"Nope." The coach pulled into the station. "Ah, here we are. The buses should be fairly regular..."

Kaoru was fairly quiet on their bus journey. He didn't mean to be, and he would certainly never admit the riddle was annoying him. But he just couldn't work out what the answer was.

"...Wait. _People _going to St Ives. So not the cats or the kittens or the sacks. That means eight. Nine."

"I think the sacks mean servants." Ellie answered. "Or something like that."

"Fine! Fifty-seven then! Fifty-six!"

"No. Ah, we're here!" She ran down the bus and he was forced to follow before it disappeared off past their stop. Kaoru climbed down and found himself looking at a ridiculously steep car park, clearly on the side of a hill that nobody had bothered to level off at all. The wind up here stung his eyes. He could see a family struggling to get the car door shut against the angle of the hill and the wind. Well, this was worth the journey.

"Kaoru-san!" She shouted over the weather, laughing. "Turn around!"

He turned. She was standing on a low wall, made of grey stone, and in front of her was a dirty-looking public toilet. But beyond that was the slope of the hill, layers of buildings getting thicker and thicker, falling down until they formed a town, stretching around the curve of the ocean.

"That's quite a view." He admitted.

"Wait till you see it at night!" She said happily. "It's been years since I've been here, we used to come on holiday..." Something seemed to occur to her, and she looked suddenly downcast. Then suddenly she was all smiles again. "Well, shall we go down?"

"Something bothering you?" Kaoru asked.

"No, no, it's nothing..."

Something was very soon bothering him, however. It wasn't just the car park that was built on a hill.

"Tell me." He asked as they hurtled down another steep hill from the car park into the town itself. "Did your ancestors have something against flat ground or were they just too lazy to level any of it out?"

She laughed. "They'd say you were the lazy one, Kaoru-san."

"Right, sure." He said, grumpily. She laughed again and he found it somewhat irritating, but he had to admit his bad mood soon lifted. The streets were cobbled and full of tourist-y gift shops, selling bags of sea shells, beach toys, wind chimes and the like. They wound around each other and around random corners, and always up and downhill. There was a tiny cinema, a little convenience shop, neither bigger than a single room in his house back home. There were houses with window boxes, some that were white-washed against the sea, there was a lifeboat station and a lighthouse. It was all so quintessentially English he couldn't help but enjoy it as he breathed in the damp air, tasting of salt and the sea.

"Oi, Grey-chan." He said, beckoning her back as the past another tat-shop on the quayside. "What're those things?" He pointed at a bucket full of red plastic handles wrapped round with wire.

"It's a crab line." She answered. "To go crabbing with."

He looked blank.

"You put some bait on it and catch crabs." She elaborated.

"Oh. So then you eat them, right?"

"Haha, no, I think you're overestimating how big the crabs are..." She laughed, picking up one of the crab lines. "Still, why don't we give it a try? I'm not sure how good the crabbing in St Ives is; I always did it in Looe..." So saying, she picked up one of the lines and went into the shop, who, sensing a market also stocked bait; which transpired to be nothing more than some fish fillets. She also bought a large bucket, to contain any crabs they captured. They walked along the seafront, then up a narrow alleyway at the far end between two white washed houses. Apparently Smeaton pier lay in this direction which, she thought, would be the best place for crabbing as the harbour walls were high and all the crabs would fall off by the time they'd pulled the line in. "We used to go crabbing a lot when we holidayed in Cornwall." She said. "This one time someone knocked our bucket over and the crabs were running all over the place. We were right by the fish market too... we had to chase them all off. Then another time my dad threw the line out and this seagull swooped down while it was still in the air and ate the fish, so the hook caught in it's mouth. The poor thing was flying round attached to the line like a deranged kite! My dad and this bloke nearby pulled it in and freed it, but oh, it was mad... and then this other time, we were eating sausages and chips on the wall in Polperro and this seagull came down and stole my mom's sausage. It swallowed it whole, and it must have got turned around in it's gullet because there were these lumps sticking out of the sides like Frankenstein bolts, you know? And another time-"

"Geez, Grey-chan." Kaoru interrupted irritably. "I didn't ask for your life story."

"Oh, sorry, Kaoru-san. I was reminiscing. You've told me so much about the Host Club I sometimes forget I have memories of my own."

He frowned. Was she teasing him? He supposed he had talked a lot about Hikaru and the others. He softened slightly. "...You must miss them, your mom and dad."

"...I do." She said.

"But they've been gone about two years, right? So I bet they'll come back soon."

"I'm sure they will." She said, but he could see the vulnerability and uncertainty on her face, just for a second. Then she smiled and hurried on ahead saying, 'there's the pier!'.

Kaoru was beginning to get a little worried about his Grey-chan. He was sure she was bottling up way more feeling than was healthy. Still, she obviously didn't want to talk to him, so he decided not to push it and followed her down to the water's edge. What happened was a happy hour, he had to admit. This was the far end of the seafront, away from the crowds and the bustle. It was quiet here and they stood together, throwing the line out, waiting a few minutes, and then pulling it in with great anticipation, marvelling at good hauls and bad hauls, and booing when crabs fell from the bait back to the sea, as if watching a crane game at the arcade. Kaoru hadn't really expected it to be fun, but it was, although the crabs were far too small to really consider eating. Ellie called them tiddlers. Kaoru called them bite-size. Still, when the bucket was nearly full, Ellie declared it was time for one last turn, and let him throw the line out. He did so, then slipped off his shoes, sitting on the edge of the pier to dangle his feet in the cool of the Atlantic. He wondered vaguely if he would ever do so again. Ellie did the same and joined him. It was pleasant. He watched the waves and for a moment forgot all about Hikaru and home and Victoria. There was only the waves and the clouds and the light pressure of Ellie's arm that would brush him just slightly as she breathed. It was nice.

_These thoughts are getting dangerous,_ Kaoru thought, though he wasn't quite sure what 'these thoughts' were. He was about to withdraw his feet anyway and stand up, move away, when he felt something rubbery and wet brush against them. Thinking it was seaweed, he went to kick it away but the rubbery thing was all in front of him.

"I think he likes you, Kaoru-san." Ellie said happily as he looked down and found there was a seal bobbing around his feet.

"Eww!" He yelped in a mixture of disgust and surprise, pulling them hastily away. The seal barked- it sounded like laughter- and withdrew.

"Aww, you scared him off..." Ellie pouted. "I heard there was a fairly tame seal around here, but I've never seen him before."

"Yeah, but he was rubbing himself all over my feet!" Kaoru replied, wiping his feet off with his hands.

"Oh, he's back!" Ellie said. "He probably wants the fish." She had just finished drawing in the line and disgorging the last of the crabs from it. She detached what remained of the bait and threw it to the waiting seal who cried joyfully and disappeared under the waves.

"Freaky thing." Kaoru muttered.

"Don't worry, Kaoru-san, they don't bite."

"I know that!"

"Then are you scared of seals?"

"No!"

"Then what's the problem?"

"I don't know where that thing has been, that's the problem!"

"Well, I think he was sweet." Ellie said decisively, picking up the bucket of crabs.

"So what do we do with these?" Kaoru asked, watching them climb all over one another and slip on the sides.

"Throw them back."

"Seriously? Then what was the point?"

"Fun." Ellie answered.

"Fun." He repeated, unimpressed.

"Did you enjoy it?"

"...Well, yeah, but..."

"Fun." She repeated, firmly, then taking the bucket swung it in a wide arc. Kaoru watched and as he turned, the sun got into his eyes, and he could just see her silhouetted there, against a backdrop of the surging, sparkling ocean; the crabs forming a graceful arc before her, sending up droplets of water as they fell into the sea. It was strangely beautiful, considering what it was made of. Somehow the sunlight had burnt that image into his memory forever.

"There, all done." She said, shaking the last of the stragglers out of the bucket and putting the crab line in it instead. "We should go wash our hands and then eat lunch somewhere... something wrong, Kaoru-san?"

"No, nothing." He said hastily, realising he had been staring. Why had he been staring? He wasn't sure what he had been thinking about or why he had been looking at her. This must be what they called 'the rebound', he realised, or something very like it, because he was missing Victoria and feeling a little guilty about running off. Maybe he did love her, even with her flaws. Wasn't that what real love was? He would have to call her later, tell her how much he would rather have been here doing this with her than with Ellie.

On the plus side, Ellie had dealt with the stinky fish bait herself. Victoria would have made him do it for sure. And he would have done it, for her. But then, he doubted she would have wanted to go crabbing to begin with.

At Ellie's insistence, they had a Cornish pasty for lunch, a heavy meaty and vegetable filling wrapped in pastry with a thick crust, that she told him had started in the tin mines. There were all kinds of different fillings, but she insisted they have original, beef and potato and swede and onion, seasoned with pepper. They sat on a bench and ate them. At least she was eating something wholesome now. She had lost more weight than ever, her clothes were hanging off her now. Whether she was even plump now would be a matter of opinion. But somehow, he had preferred her plump. She just looked dishevelled, like a fat grape shrivelling into a raisin. It didn't look right. But if she wanted to crash-diet it was up to her. He sat and watched the sea instead.

"Sixty million." He said.

"Pardon?"

"That's the entire population of the UK, isn't it?"

"Actually, I think it's more like sixty-one million."

"Fine! The answer is sixty-one million!"

"Um...?"

"St Ives is right at the end of the country, so _everyone _in it is going to St Ives!"

She blinked at him for a moment, then laughed so much and so loudly that the pasty shook in her hand and seagulls scuttled to collect the flakes and the people walking past turned to look.

"So that's a no, then." Kaoru scowled.

"I thought you'd given up." She chuckled, shaking her head. "Ah well, keep trying. Where would you like to go next?"

"I don't know. Wasn't there an art gallery back there or something?"

"Oh yes, the Tate St Ives!" She nodded. "Do you like art, Kaoru-san?"

He shrugged. "We still have a few hours to kill, we may as well."

So they did. It was mostly modern art, she told him, but there were a few older pieces and styles too. After a tricky start, it was pretty much a standard trip; but the first room baffled him. They had paid their fee and moved into the cloakroom. There was an attendant nearby to watch over the valuables and it was warm inside, so he slipped his coat off. There was an empty hanger on the rack nearest to him, so he went to hang it up when Ellie caught his arm. He immediately felt himself blushing at her touch.

What was happening to him?

"Kaoru-san, I don't think you should add to the art." She laughed, as the attendant came over and explained, rather slowly, that this was just a _representation _of a cloakroom and was actually an exhibit. Looking more closely, he could see the random objects stuck to the walls and ceilings, or nestling within the other clothes, but he didn't see how this was art. As he told Ellie and the attendant, rather loudly, if he wanted to look at a cloakroom he would go to one. This lead to quite a long debate with the attendant- who admitted they were not the first to make that mistake- until it almost became an argument and Ellie dragged him away. They didn't spend long in the gallery after that, though they had fun trying to identify some of the more unusual pieces. If that was all he had to do to be an artist, Kaoru said, he would give it a try some time. Somehow from this Ellie inferred an actual ambition and then proceeded to drag him around all the art shops in the small town, which it had in abundance. Still, he picked a few prints for his mom, who would appreciate the colours or design and would draw inspiration from them. She was working on a collection with bright colours and intricate patterns right now. She said they were due a come back, even if she had to manufacture one.

By this time the shadows were beginning to lengthen and the golden light from earlier in the day was turning to orange. After walking all through the town all over again going from art shop to art shop, they were tired and ready to sit down and eat. She took him to a place called The Sloop Inn, which Kaoru had been bugging her about all day; not only because of the absurd name that in all honesty, he had some trouble pronouncing- they didn't have any of those sounds in Japanese- but because it was apparently famous. And it had webcams mounted on the outside, so people could go onto the website and see what was happening. He had been tempted to call Hikaru right there and then and get him to go see so they could wave, but as Ellie gently pointed out it would be about four AM in Japan and Hikaru probably wouldn't appreciate it. They went inside together and ate, while trying to decide where to go next.

"I thought perhaps we could go to the cinema this evening." Ellie suggested. "It would fill up some time and then we could go to the Bed and Breakfast and get an early night. We had an early start today and there will be another tomorrow."

"Alright, I guess. I want to have time to go call Victoria tonight first, though."

"We'll be in before ten." She reassured him. "Maybe even by nine. There's just one other place I'd like to go first..."

The place turned out to be a tiny stone Church, right at the top of the cliff, overlooking the sea. It could only hold perhaps ten people, but it was locked up tight against the elements and apparently services were still held. The view was most spectacular, with the rugged jutting angles of the cliffs, the grey sea and above them both the rising moon and the setting sun. He'd never seen them both in the sky at once before, though he had known there were places where it happened. Still, to him it seemed special and breathtaking. If Victoria had been here, he would have told her she was beautiful and she probably would have kissed him so hard he was almost knocked off the cliff. He glanced sideways at Ellie. No chance of that here. The wind tousled her dishwater blond hair and made her look more a mess than ever. If this had been in Japan, with the risk of people he knew seeing her, he would have been embarrassed.

"Geez, Grey-chan, don't you carry a brush?" He asked. "You know, between that and the anorak, you look a right sight."

Either the wind whipped his words away before she heard or she ignored them, gesturing and shouting instead that they should make their way back down before it got dark. She was right, by the time they reached the tiny cinema it was truly turning to dusk and the cinema had only one screen; which meant they had a wait of about an hour before the next film- _Ponyo_- began. They decided to kill the time by going into the 'family-friendly' bar next door. The tables were full of families just finishing meals or groups of partying adults just coming in to begin the night's drinking. Ellie sighed when she saw them, saying such people would be better off in Newquay, but didn't bother to elaborate. They sat down at the bar and ordered two cokes.

"Two." Kaoru said.

"How did you get that?" She asked, evasively.

"Well, it just said the guy _had _all those things. Not that they were with him."

"No, it said a man _with _seven wives." She pointed out.

"Fine, _eight_."

"No."

"Nine, with you."

"No."

"Arrgh! What kind of question is this?!"

Ellie laughed but refused to tell him the answer, so he finally gave up and the conversation turned to other things. The coke glasses were dry and the other tables beginning to get tipsy when one of the men, probably in his late twenties, wandered over.

"Hey, sweetheart." He said to Ellie. "You okay? This guy is lucky to have a pretty thing like you for a girlfriend."

Kaoru looked on incredulous. Was Ellie _really_ going to be picked up by some guy in a bar? How desperate was he?

Still, he sat straighter on the stool. Just in case.

"Oh no, he's not my boyfriend."

"In that case, why don't I buy you a drink?"

Kaoru tensed, ready to speak, but Ellie shot him a reassuring glance and said to the man. "Thanks, but I'm underage."

"Well, I won't tell if you don't."

"No thank you."

The man sighed, turning away. "Alright, sweetheart, didn't mean to be a nuisance. Still, let me know if you change your mind. Nothing weird, I'm just saying." With that, he left.

"Just saying?!" Kaoru exploded. "What a jerk!"

"Oh, he was alright..." Ellie said. "He was just being friendly."

"Don't fall for it just because some guy flatters you!"

"Kaoru-san, please calm down. He's gone now, so it's fine."

Kaoru said nothing, but as time passed and nothing happened he gradually felt the tension ease out of him and began to relax. Ellie ordered some more drinks for them, and they talked more until it was almost time to go back to the cinema. Kaoru had to use the facilities first, but bid her wait and made his way through the crowded bar to the toilets at the back.

"Ready?" He asked when he got back and saw her drained glass too.

"Yes." She nodded, moving as if to get up, then stopped. "Oh! I love this song!"

"What song?" Kaoru asked, straining his ears to hear the sound system over the clamour. He didn't have to try hard because then Ellie began to sing along. Loudly. Just like it was the _Phantom of the Opera _CD back in her own kitchen.

"So lately, been wondering, who will be there to take my place? When I'm gone, you'll need love, to light the shadows on your face... if a greater wave shall fall, it'll fall upon us all! In between the sand and stone, could you make it on your own?!"

"Grey-chan..." He tried. She was very loud and rather tuneless. People were starting to stare. Or cheer. She ignored them all and carried on.

"If I could! Then I would! I'd go wherever you will go! Way up high! Or down low! I'll go wherever you will go!"

"Grey-chan, that's enough!" Kaoru snapped. Then he saw the man watching her and snatched her glass up, smelling it. Even he could smell the vodka in it, overpowering the scent of the coke.

Had that guy spiked her drink?! He was about ready to go and start a fight, but unfortunately he had Ellie to think of, still warbling behind him.

"And maybe! I'll find out! A way to make it back some day! To watch you! To guide you! Through the darkest of your days! If a-"

"Ellie!" He shouted. "We have to go!"

"Then I hope there's someone out there who can bring me back to you!"

"That's enough!" He shook her shoulder roughly. She pouted.

"Don't you like this song, Kaoru-san? It's Wherever you will go, by the Calling."

"I know what it is!" He waved the glass under her nose. "Smell this. That guy spiked your drink. You're tipsy and making a fool of yourself."

She sniffed it and seemed slightly surprised. "Oh well." She shrugged, going back to her singing. "If I could turn back time! If I could make you mine!"

"Come on, Grey-chan." He sighed. "Save the singing for the kitchen or you'll regret it tomorrow."

"Alright." She sighed, following him out. They stood still in the cool sea air and the darkness for a while.

"You okay?" Kaoru asked. "Feeling more sober yet?"

"I'm not drunk!" She protested. "Just a little, you know, woo!"

"Still, we're not going back in there." Kaoru said sternly. True, she wasn't far gone right now. If you didn't know her, you wouldn't realise. But there was no way he was letting her go back in there to let that guy make her worse and get her while her defences were down. Just then he saw the guy in question wandering out to have a cigarette, and resisted the urge to go and punch him in the face. Now was not the time. Of course, they would have to pass him to get to the cinema... what if he followed them in? He saw them and smiled at Ellie.

"Let's just get out of here." Kaoru sighed, disgruntled, placing his hands on her back and pushing her away. "It's been a long day, let's just head to the hotel and get some sleep."

"Alright." She agreed. "But can we go a little slower? My head is spinning..."

"Pfft, you are such a light weight..." Kaoru stopped pushing, grabbing her round the wrist and pulling her instead, hoping she would at least stay upright as they teetered up a relatively small hill. "You have to watch out for your drinks, you idiot. He could have put something much worse in! You know that, right?! Maybe you don't think you're pretty enough to attract perverts. Well, perverts aren't fussy, so be more careful!"

"...it wasn't him, Kaoru-san." She said, ashamed, enough so that she said nothing in response to his comment about her looks. Or maybe she agreed.

"What? Well, who else would it have been?" He asked, exasperated, worried it would be him. He held open the door to the bed and breakfast, but she didn't go in, looking at her shoes instead and shifting her weight from foot to foot.

"...me."

"What?"

"...I asked him to buy me a few shots... But I didn't like the taste, so I added it to the coke..."

"What?! You stupid...! What if he'd tried something?! Why did you-"

"To forget!" She screamed suddenly. If she was capable of losing her temper, she had now. The words echoed off the building.

"Forget what?" He asked, then thought back to their discussion before the crabbing. "Look, I'm sure your parents will be home soon-"

"The company is in trouble." She said in a rush. "The rejected designs have been the final straw. Several companies have been trying to force a hostile takeover and I just don't know how we're going to stave them off without going bankrupt and the books are a mess and I just don't know what to do..."

So that was the important letter she had to fax.

"Well, crying and drinking isn't going to help." Kaoru sighed, ruffling her hair roughly, ignoring her attempts to push him off. "Look, businesses have good times and bad times, but they get through. Anyway, you can't do anything. Your parents are the ones in charge, it's their job and they'll sort something out."

"....y-yes, you're right... but I..."

"..." He sighed deeply, pushing her inside. "You know, between the not-eating and the spiking-your-own-drink, you're actually pretty self-destructive, aren't you, Grey-chan? I mean, come on, I have enough problems of my own right now. Think you can spare me the bother worrying about you too?"

"...alright, I'll try Kaoru-san."

"Good girl. Now go to bed, and don't do anything that stupid ever again!"

"...Kaoru-san," She laughed, heading upstairs. "You sound just like my father!"

She laughed, but as she turned away to go up onto the landing, he could still see the tears were threatening to spill over. At least he knew what was bothering her now. But what a troublesome girl...

Exhausted, he followed her upstairs and went to bed himself. It was a good job they hadn't been to see the film. He was so tired, he felt he could go right to sleep despite the old and lumpy mattress that he could feel sagging slightly in the middle. There was just one thing he had to do first. He reached for the phone.

"Hello?" Victoria asked. Relief immediately flooded through him. This was the girl for him. He loved her. He must do, if he had missed her so much in just one day. Yes. It had to be love.

"Hi, Vicky." He answered. They would work it out. Somehow it would be okay.

*

A/N: Things are moving along, as are they. Next time they go to Stratford upon Avon, Shakespeare's birthplace. I'm not sure when it will be up though. I was finally offered a job, huzzah, though I can't start till the paperwork clears. (I finished A-Levels last summer, I'm taking some time out before uni) So yes, updates may become less frequent, but for me at least it's a good thing! Money is generally helpful for, you know, eating. In other news, the stories Ellie told of the holidays in this chapter are all true and they happened to us. Ah, memories.


	8. Lamppost

A/N: Somehow I ended up with a lot of playing-with-italics in this chapter. Hmm. Usual disclaimer applies. Enjoy!

Chapter Eight- Lamppost

_-If I could turn back time...-_

Hikaru was lying in bed, sleeping. Or more precisely, trying to sleep but in reality feeling pretty bored. His fever had gone now, leaving only a slight temperature behind it. Unfortunately, he was still being isolated to this room until all the spots had gone along with it. Which could be forever. Or so it felt.

He _was _very bored, though, and wished again Kaoru was here. Hikaru hated to watch TV alone, and none of his games were any fun without the multiplayer option. The worst thing was, he just _bet _Kaoru was too busy with Victoria to be sparing him a thought...

But he couldn't brood on that. Why should he? It's not like Kaoru would be wasting any time thinking about _him_. He was just considering going a few rounds against the computer when someone knocked the door. A moment later, Haruhi entered, laden down with two carrier bags over each arm and a cake box balanced between her hands.

"Are you moving in?" Hikaru asked.

"Haha." She replied, slightly out of breath from carrying the burden all the way up to the house and then to his room. It figured she wouldn't have let any of the maids help her. "No. These are all the gifts the others have been sending for you since you got sick. I figured you're well enough to have them now."

"Really?" Hikaru immediately cheered up. "Did Kaoru send anything?"

"Why would he send it to me anyway?" She pointed out, carefully pulling the lid off the cake box so he could see the chocolate concoction underneath. "This is from Honey-senpai." She explained. "He tried to bring you one every week, but your mom said you've been off your food and wouldn't have eaten it. I tried to save them, but some of them went off and my dad kept eating the others, if Honey-senpai didn't get to them, first." From her look of annoyance this had been the cause of some dispute between her and her father. "I'll bake you some more soon, okay?"

"Alright." He agreed, not showing that he would rather have a home-made cake by her any day, even though it probably wouldn't be as tasty. She put the lid back on the box and set the cake carefully down on the floor, then preceded to empty the contents of the other bags unceremoniously over his duvet. Books and toys and sweets and distractions of all kinds tumbled out. Haruhi began sorting through them.

"This was from Kyouya-senpai and his family." She said, showing him a small medicine kit, containing anti-inflammatory cream and other such essentials. "I think he was going to get you something more fun, but then he got chicken pox too. He's already had it twice. I don't think he's very pleased with you right now."

Hikaru swallowed. "It's not my fault! I haven't seen him since I got it!"

"Apparently I carried germs from you to him." She rolled her eyes. "Honestly, I tried to visit him but he's just so ill-tempered I'm not sure I'll try again." She seemed irritated by this ill treatment, and for a happy moment he could delude himself that she really wouldn't visit anyone but him. Unfortunately, in spite of her tough exterior he knew she was kind-hearted and probably would go to check on him. As long as she spent more time with him, he didn't care.

"Mori-senpai sent these." Haruhi continued, showing him a block of wood and a sharp piece of flint.

"...how thoughtful." Hikaru was confused.

"Apparently when he's ill, he likes to whittle." Haruhi explained.

Hikaru wanted to answer, but all he could envision was Mori, laid up with a cold and fever, whittling away at a lump of wood, flakes of it falling onto the bed clothes. He couldn't help but laugh. Haruhi smiled too.

"I know, I know." She shook her head. "I can't even imagine him being sick. But he's pretty good at it. He showed me all these different birds he'd made. I never expected him to have a skill like that."

"Me either." Hikaru agreed. "But... it kinda suits him."

"I thought so too." Haruhi nodded. "He said he'd make a bird for me, next time."

"Oh." He was suddenly sullen. She knew he liked her, so why was she being so insensitive?! She probably meant well, she was probably trying to act as if everything was normal. He didn't really appreciate it. She must have noticed because she hastily moved on.

"The rest is from Tamaki." She sighed.

Hikaru looked at the masses of sweets, cup-in-ball games, puzzle books, information pamphlets (helpfully highlighted for him), long letters- as if the phone calls hadn't been enough- novels, cans of nourishing soup, packets of tissues, glossy magazines and some CDs, including one of his own making featuring soothing piano pieces played by himself.

"...Typical Tono." Kaoru sighed.

"That guy was showing up every day or two to bring something else for me to give to you." Haruhi said. "He can be such a nuisance."

But somehow, he was sure she wasn't really annoyed and he felt a small pang at the thought. She was playing with the CD of his playing.

"Do you want to put that on?" He asked.

"...I already did." She confessed. "I'm sorry, I was just curious." She laid it down.

"Have it if you want." Hikaru said, pushing it towards her. "I'll never listen to it."

"Are you sure?" She asked. "It was a gift for you, you should take it."

"I'm sure he'd rather it went to you." Hikaru sighed. "Haruhi... you know these things were just an excuse, right?"

"An excuse?" She echoed. "What for?"

"For seeing you." He said. "You know he's in love with you, right?"

Haruhi didn't say anything. "But..."

"I'm only telling you because I don't want you to give an answer before you know all the options." He snapped. "It's not like I want you to go out with me by default."

"Hikaru..." She seemed unsure what to say. "Hey, do you want some of this cake? I could get someone to get a knife and some plates. We'd probably need forks too-"

"Haruhi." He interrupted, but wasn't sure how to continue. There were too many things he wanted to say. That he knew, somewhere deep inside, that she wanted Tamaki. That he wanted her to go out with him, by default or not. That he wished Kaoru was here to advise him. That he was glad he got sick because he got so much more attention from her. That he wished things could have been different. That if Kaoru and she both had people more important to them than him, he felt like he would fall apart. How he wanted her to be happy, but was scared that would make him unhappy. There were a dozen or more other emotions swirling round in there too, emotions he would never be sensitive enough to understand and none of which he could give any expression to. She was looking at him, slightly concerned. Maybe she thought his zoning out was a sign his fever was coming back. He had to say something.

"Haruhi, have you ever played on a Wii?"

*

Kaoru woke up to the sound of seagulls screaming at each other and the sound of rain on his roof. He knew the good weather in this country couldn't last long. Groaning, he rolled over and looked at the time. It was 10:30. Breakfast in this stupid commoner place had finished an hour ago. Why did they expect holiday makers to get up so early? He'd have to find Ellie and get her to buy his something to eat in the town. He sat up, rubbing his face blearily. Ellie was going to be mad at him, they were meant to be travelling again today. Except she was never mad at anyone. Still, he had better get up. He dragged himself out of bed and went to shower.

When he came out, he knocked on Ellie's door but got no answer. She must be downstairs somewhere, he supposed, and went to look. She wasn't in the lounge, or in the dining room. He was about to go outside to look when he heard a familiar warbling coming from the kitchen, singing something approximating 'Angel of Music' from _Phantom of the Opera_. It could only be one person; even if she was hidden behind a door marked 'staff only'. He pushed it open and went into the kitchen, where, sure enough, Ellie was busy making sandwiches and singing tunelessly.

"Are you breaking and entering now, Grey-chan?" He asked. She jumped, startled, but then turned to him and smiled.

"Good morning, Kaoru-san!" She said. "No, I bought this stuff in the town. I just asked if I could borrow this to make us some lunch."

"Forget lunch." Kaoru returned, shaking his head and wondering why they couldn't just buy lunch later like normal people. "I want breakfast. Did you get me any?"

"Of course." She answered, pulling a small box of eggs out of her shopping bag. "Eggs on toast okay?"

"Didn't you get any bacon?"

"No, sorry."

"I guess it would take too long to go get some." Kaoru sighed. "Fine, I'll just have egg. But scrambled, not fried!"

"Good job I bought milk." She said, raising her eyebrows slightly, but laying the sandwich making aside got to work.

"So what are we doing today?" Kaoru asked.

"We missed our coach to Stratford, so I'll have to exchange the tickets. We can probably have a walk on the beach first and then travel there and get there tonight. We'll have to change the tickets to Birmingham too, or we won't have any time in Stratford at all, and then the ones to London... it's a bit of a pain."

"It's not my fault." Kaoru defended. "You should have woken me."

"I thought you'd set your alarm, Kaoru-san."

"Maybe if you hadn't been too tipsy to remind me..."

She blushed vividly at this, and turned away. "I'm sorry, Kaoru-san, I was sure I had."

She probably had, Kaoru thought slightly guiltily, but there was no need for her to know that. He left her to it and went to call Victoria. At least someone was glad to speak to him.

"How's Ellie doing?" She asked, not far into their conversation. "My daddy read somewhere that her parents' company might be in trouble?"

_And your career_. Kaoru thought blandly. "I think a few people are looking into buying them out."

"But they aren't going to let them, right?" She asked, anxiously. "I mean, her parents are going to come home and sort it out, right?"

"Maybe." Kaoru shrugged. "Probably."

"Haha, at least if it goes under I'll be able to come over and work for you guys." She said cheerfully.

"Don't joke about things like that." Kaoru snapped. "Grey-chan is really worried about this."

"Alright, sorry." She answered. "Since when were you two bosom chums?"

"We're not! But you are, right? Maybe you should be a little more worried, that's all."

"I am worried." She said more softly. "It's just that I can't do much about it right now, so I'm trying to be positive. Ellie's parents have been abroad for almost two years now. She needs them." "She seems to do pretty well on her own." Kaoru answered.

"Only because she has to."

Before he had time to reply, Ellie was calling that the eggs were done, and he had to hang up.

*

The next day dawned on Stratford as gloomy and wet as the previous day had dawned on St Ives. As usual, it didn't seem to blight Ellie's spirits in the slightest.

"We can go and see open-air Shakespeare later!" She said cheerfully.

"And get soaked?"

"Maybe they'll be doing _The Tempest_!"

This was the difference between them. To Kaoru, the fact it was swinging constantly between drizzle and rain outside would rule out open-air anything, including walking around the town. To Ellie it was water off a duck's back; she wouldn't let the rain ruin her fun. Which unfortunately meant Kaoru had to go around with her. In the rain.

Still, he had to admit Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of Shakespeare, was an interesting place. Even if every other building did have 'Shakespeare' written on it. It was as bad as Graceland for Elvis. Or, as Ellie said, Whitby for Dracula. He wasn't altogether sure where Whitby was or what it had to do with Dracula, but she never was inclined for explanation. She laughed and said she'd take him there as they worked their way North up the country.

He thought he would have enjoyed Stratford a lot more in the sunshine. The river Avon was lovely, and everywhere there were picturesque old buildings and flower gardens, in amongst Shakespeare-themed tourist traps and a fair number of high street shops. He wouldn't even have noticed the lampposts had Ellie not walked directly into one. One moment she was telling him about the wonderful attraction of 'Sheep Street' and the next she was reeling backwards clutching her face after a loud clang.

"Oww..." She whined. "Ouch! That really hurt that time!"

"That time?" Kaoru laughed. "How often do you do this?"

"...it surprised me."

"Oh yes, inanimate objects can really be surprising." Kaoru rolled his eyes.

"It was a stealth lamppost!"

"Really? I can see it just fine." As he examined it, he noticed it wasn't an ordinary lamppost. There appeared to be cast-iron characters sitting on the crossbar. "What is that?" He asked.

Ellie craned her neck upwards, covering her eyes to keep the rain out of them as she looked. "I think its Puck and Bottom." She answered.

"Who?"

"From _A Midsummer Night's Dream_." Ellie replied. "Oh, look, all the lampposts have characters on them!" Delighted, she hurried between them to see for herself. Indeed, there was hardly a normal lamppost in the place, each elaborately shaped and designed. They were quite beautiful, but Kaoru didn't get it. Making lampposts so ornate seemed a waste of time and talent to him. Ellie on the other hand loved them, and insisted on stopping to look and marvel at every single one of them as Kaoru got damper and damper and more and more bad tempered. He was glad when they stopped for lunch, and even gladder when the outdoor performance had been cancelled due to the weather. Ellie, on the other hand, was bitterly disappointed and only cheered up at the prospect of a trip down the river. In the rain.

Kaoru still didn't understand this girl's idea of fun, but at least the boat would have a roof.

As they took a ride down the river in the glass bottom boat, he couldn't help but remember the time he had done this with Victoria. It had been better weather then, and better company. He tried to remember every detail, everything that had made that day special, but found the details had begun to escape him. He was starting to forget why he loved her, and that worried him. He would ring her as soon as he got back, and be reminded.

Ellie seemed lost in thought too, and didn't look up when a gust of wind blew some rain in under the roof and all over Kaoru; even when he complained several times. Frustrated, he nudged her and she turned to look at him.

"Aren't you listening?" He demanded.

"Sorry, Kaoru-san." She apologised immediately. "I was just thinking about the last time I was here. It was the first time I met Victoria."

"Huh? Really?"

"Yep." She nodded. "Let's see... she was a model even then, for the children's range, you know. There were about five of them, and we all came here so they could pose by the river and on the narrow boats and so on. I'd come along with my mom to watch..."

*

_"_You're _not one of the models, are you?" _

_ The young girl, who had yet to lose what her mother called 'baby fat' and who wore her hair in a wide plait looked up at the speaker and felt very plain. This girl was blond, and slim, with large pleasing blue eyes and just the slightest curl in her hair. In the white dress, one of her mother's summer designs, Ellie thought the girl looked like an angel. _

_ "No, I'm not." Ellie answered. "I just came here to watch."_

_ "Well, as long as you're quiet and don't distract anyone." Victoria said magnanimously, flicking her hair behind her, preening like a bird. "Do you like looking at all the pretty clothes?"_

_ Ellie shrugged. "I like the river."_

_ "The clothes are prettier." Victoria said disdainfully, looking at Ellie's old t-shirt and tracksuit bottoms. "Don't you think so?"_

_ Again, Ellie shrugged. "I can see the clothes whenever I like, though, so I prefer the river."_

_ "Whenever you like?" Victoria clearly didn't believe her. "But these aren't out in shops yet, so you _can't. We're _the only ones who can see them!"_

_ "I can!" Ellie answered. "My mommy is the one who makes them all, so I can!" _

_ "Really? Then what's your name?" Victoria was suspicious._

_ "Ellie Grahams."_

_ "Oh! Well, I'm Victoria." She said proudly. "I'm so happy to be working for your mother." She added, offering a hand. Ellie shook it, not recognising the smarminess and feeling rather in awe of this grown-up child her own age. "It's a pity you aren't pretty." Victoria added. "Then you could model for your mommy too."_

_ "I do." Ellie said, slightly hurt. "...At home."_

_ "Oh, that's nice." She was being patronising before she even knew what being patronising was. "Mrs Grahams says we're all going to go on a boat ride when this is done. Are you coming?"_

_ "Yes."_

_ "Then you can sit by me." Victoria decided. "We're going to be friends, Ellie."_

_ And from then on, they were._

*

"Victoria hasn't changed much." Ellie chuckled, as if this were a fond memory. Kaoru forced a smile too, but he couldn't help think Victoria had been a little, well, mean. But there wouldn't have been any malicious intent, she was only a kid after all. Still, it made him uncomfortable. He had been told before that Victoria chose her friends carefully, and he had thought he didn't care, that he wanted her as she came, but...

This trip was supposed to be helping him sort his head out, not making him more confused. He was quiet the rest of the boat ride and barely aware when they climbed off. He was brought back to Ellie's exclamation of delight- the cancelled outdoor performance would now be taking place indoors, in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. Right now they were playing _Romeo and Juliet_. Excited, Ellie took his hand and pulled him towards the theatre, and he blushed slightly at her touch.

Why was he blushing? He very quickly soothed it away. It was just thinking about Victoria. He couldn't be falling for Ellie. He had Victoria. It wasn't right. There was no way he could ever fall for Ellie. It wouldn't be right. And anyway, they weren't right for each other! Never in a million years would it work between them! Not that it mattered, as he didn't want there to be anything between them, because he didn't like her like that. He didn't and wouldn't. Ever. This train of thought was laughable.

Still, as he watched Romeo and Juliet play out their tragic lives and watched Ellie watching them, watched her laugh and gasp and weep as if she didn't know how it was going to end, he was forced to accept this was in danger of going too far. It was just rebounding, from the separation from Victoria. He had to keep his distance, or he would end up hurting both of them.

So even though his inclination was to tease her mercilessly about her tears, he commented only on the acting and the sets and then, after a late dinner at their hotel, went to bed and dreamt he and Victoria were going to St Ives, and met a man with seven wives, one of whom was Ellie.

Sometimes that bothered him. Other times he was simply relieved.

*

A/N: And next time, it's Birmingham! I'm not sure when it'll be up though, I'm crazy-busy right now...


	9. Train

A/N: Arrrgh, this chapter was so stubborn!! I tried to write it everyday, but it was like typing in treacle. The words wouldn't flow at all... bah. Now let's play the guess-WK's-home-city-game! :D It's not hard, given this chapter. XD

On that note, I suppose I really ought to say- I changed my penname! It's been something I've been itching to do for a long time but been putting off because people knew me as Waffles4eva. Also, I've been posting less and less fanfiction over the years, so it seemed pointless. But I've finally started using Devart/youtube as WikketKrikket, and I'm considering posting some fics up; so it seemed sensible to bring this into line with my account on everything else. And in case anyone is wondering, yes it is a reference to 'Life, the Universe and Everything'. XD Ah, how much more exciting cricket would be... still fun, though.

_**One final thing that actually has some importance to the chapter making sense:**_** Up till now, Ellie, Kaoru and Victoria have all been speaking Japanese to each other unless otherwise stated. In this chapter, please assume that Ellie-Kaoru conversation is in Japanese and Ellie-Greg in English. Thanks :)**

Chapter Nine: Train

_-If I could make you mine-_

Victoria was searching online to find out what was going on with Grace Grahams as a company. She had heard already of the buyers seeking to take it over, but she still hadn't heard what Ellie's parents were going to do about it. She didn't find anything today, either. This was getting ridiculous. Surely her parents had to come home and sort this out?

Or perhaps not. Ellie's parents hadn't been back to England for almost two years now. Maybe they had seen this coming and skipped out on the trouble.

Well, if they could, so could Victoria. If Grace Grahams went down before she had another job lined up, her modelling career was pretty much over. Agents were expensive. Now more than ever, she needed Kaoru to swing her a job with his mother. And imagine, being a model for Hitachiin! They were the biggest designers in the Eastern Hemisphere, and their western-style designs had been making huge headway into Europe and America. If she could get in with them, she was made for life.

But of course, Kaoru wasn't here. He was off gallivanting up and down the country with Ellie. Timed as it was right after the picnic, when she had obviously scared Kaoru off a bit, she wondered if he was running away. But she didn't have anything to worry about. It wasn't like he'd ever find Ellie attractive enough to stray, not when he had her. She'd just have to move a little slower for him; and that was fine. He was the nicest guy she'd dated so far, and he could give her a lot. His happiness was important to her.

She hoped he'd call tonight.

*

All Kaoru could see in the plexiglass window of the train was the occasional light and his own face. That and Ellie's hunched profile. She had fallen asleep some time ago and her forehead had been slowly sliding down the back of the seat in front ever since. He had been waiting for her to be so far stooped over that she overbalanced and went headfirst off the chair, but it seemed it was not to be. The train had been in a tunnel for some time, and that probably meant they were coming up to the massive underground catacombs that formed Birmingham New Street Station. It was possibly the most depressing place in the modern world, endless grimy concrete platforms, poorly lit and cold. Even the brightly coloured vending machines looked drab and dull. The concourse upstairs was just as bad, a row of ticket barriers surrounded on both sides by harassed travellers and the franchises of faceless corporations, plus food stalls for those that needed some quick fuel during their journey. They even charged to use the toilets. Ellie was hoping some of that money was going on the several-million pound planned renovations. He didn't know about that, but he hoped this would be the last time he ever had to come here. All their trains had passed through this place up till now, it was the station that connected London to the rest of England, and he was sick to death of Birmingham New Street Station.

The train juddered to a halt, and with the jerk of brakes Ellie's head smacked onto the plastic chair back, waking her up at last.

"Oh!" She seemed alarmed. "Kaoru-san, this is our stop!"

"Yeah, yeah." He said, ushering her out into the ailse so he could reach up and pull their bags down from the luggage rack. "So what's the plan?"

"Well, first things first, let's go and put these in the station lockers." Ellie answered, leading the way off the train. They pushed through the crowds and made their way up the stairs, and then across the concourse and through the ticket barriers. Finally, he had made it to the far side. There wasn't much to see, just a WHSmiths and another set of escalators.

"Let's see..." Ellie peered around, looking amongst the masses of boards announcing arrivals and departures to try and see either the lockers or a more helpful sign. Kaoru was more concerned with the stall selling beautiful cookies they were standing next to.

"Oh, they're really good." Ellie approved. "Would you like one, Kaoru-san?"

"Sure." He said, and eventually chose a white chocolate and raspberry one. He had been leaning towards the orange chocolate one, but as he had gone to point at it, Ellie had grabbed his wrist and pulled it away.

"No, Kaoru-san!" She shouted. "The orange chocolate is very disappointing!"

At that loud exclamation, a lot of people looked over. At least she'd yelled it in Japanese, so most might actually think she was shouting at something important. What he really noticed, though, was not nearly so many people looked as he would have expected. What sort of place was this? Ellie paid hastily for the cookie and then dragged him off by the hand. He soon pulled away. There was no way he could hold her hand and eat a cookie and pull his suitcase. Besides, he didn't need to be lead around like a child.

Having located the lockers and managing to fit the suitcases in- years of playing Tetris was finally helpful, Kaoru thought- it was time to go out and hit the town; and in so doing they hit the next problem. There were half a dozen or more exits to the station, and Ellie was largely unfamiliar with the city, rarely going further than the station herself- she always shopped in Worcester. Eventually they settled on heading up the escalators, which surprisingly lead into a shopping centre rather than another floor of the station. They emerged into a crowd between a Subway and a Starbucks. What a place.

"Oh!" Ellie said. "I remember- this is the Pallisades."

"Which is?"

"Well, it's a shopping centre. But we can get to the Bullring if we go down that way, I think." She pointed at a large helpful sign over a walkway saying 'Welcome to the Bullring'. What a genius she was, Kaoru thought drably.

"And the Bullring is?"

"A shopping centre." He must have looked unimpressed because she quickly added: "But it's the biggest in Europe!"

"Wow." He rolled his eyes, but secretly he was quite surprised. Maybe this place wouldn't be so bad...

Ellie lead the way through the throngs of people and Kaoru followed as best he could. He had discovered something about the English in crowded town centres, and that was that nobody ever stopped or stepped aside. You didn't wait for a gap in the people, you simply created one. It would be much easier if anybody could walk in a straight line, but instead everybody just dodged and weaved and swerved at the last minute around one another without hesitation and shoved past where need be. But, because they were English, they of course had to be polite about it so you ended up with the weird combination of being pushed aside with a distant "Sorry, 'scuse me, sorry". Over this self-deprecating monologue, it was hard to hear anything else and they didn't hear someone's name being yelled after them for some time. Ellie was prattling on about something called 'the 98p Chinese store' when Kaoru thought he heard someone yelling and turned to look.

"Kaoru-san, what is it?"

"Grace!" The voice came again. "Grace!" It was revealed to be a young man, who ran up to them, battling his way through the crowds and grinning all over his face. "Glad it was you." He puffed, a little out of breath. "I would've looked like a prat otherwise."

"Do you know this guy?" Kaoru asked.

"Greg!" Ellie said in delight, showing that she obviously did know him. "I never thought I'd see you here! I should have guessed!"

"Yeah, why didn't you tell me you were coming to Birmingham?!"

"Well, we're only here for the day and I hadn't spoken to you for so long, I thought-"

"I wish you'd told me, I would have met you sooner! Oh, but it's so good to see you!" He hugged her hard. "What have you been doing with yourself, girl? You lost weight!"

"Well, a little..."

Kaoru cleared his throat loudly.

"Oh! Greg, this is Kaoru-san. You remember my parents went to Japan? This is the son of the family they met with."

"Oh... so is he your _boyfriend_?"

"No, he's sort-of dating Victoria."

"No way!" He turned to Kaoru. "Are you sure you can handle her?"

"_Wakarimasen." _Kaoru replied. No way he was speaking English for the benefit of this jerk.

"Oh, sorry, guess you don't speak English..." He seemed embarrassed. Good.

"Ellie, who is this guy?" Kaoru asked, unimpressed.

"It's Greg, he's an old friend of mine. He used to live near us, but he moved here for university. Why are you pretending not to understand English?" She frowned.

"I don't bother when I have no interest in what he's saying."

"Kaoru-san, I haven't seen him for two years..."

"Then don't you think that's a good sign he didn't want to keep in touch?"

"Kaoru-san..."

"Um, should I leave?" Greg asked. "I feel like I'm a bit of a third wheel."

"No, no!" Ellie insisted. "What are you doing here? Are you working?"

"I was, I have a part-time job in the gadget shop down that way." Greg pointed behind them. "But I saw you so I had to leg it up here after you." He chuckled. "Don't worry, my shift was over."

"Oh, good! If you're free, why don't you come with us?"

"I could show you round- how long are you here for?"

"Just today, we're getting the train to London tonight."

"What? Already?" He sighed. "But yeah, sure, I'll come round with you, as long as your friend there doesn't mind."

"I do mind." Kaoru muttered, but Greg didn't understand him and Ellie didn't hear- or pretended not to. He didn't want to be dragged around some city he knew nothing about by Ellie and some guy who clearly wouldn't want him around where he would end up being totally ignored. "Oi, Grey-chan." He said. "If you want to go off on your own with this guy, I don't mind."

"What?" Ellie seemed dismayed. "Kaoru-san, I couldn't do that!"

"You want to, though."

"Kaoru-san, whatever is the matter...?"

Kaoru sighed huffily and turned his back on them, looking at the jewellery in the shop window they were standing by. Most of it, apparently, only cost 98p.

"What's up with him?" Greg asked. "Does he want me to leave?"

"No, no, of course not!" Ellie said hastily, but was unable to think of a lie to cover Kaoru's odd behaviour.

"Maybe I should just go and leave you alone..."

"No!" Ellie cried. "...I want you to stay."

Kaoru seethed to himself. This was meant to be a trip for _his _benefit and for _him _to enjoy, not for Ellie to go off with some guy. It wasn't fair of him, either- Kaoru meant what he said. If this Greg guy had really been interested in keeping in touch, wouldn't he have done it? Kaoru looked Ellie up and down as she was smiling at Greg, lightly touching his arm as she asked him to stay. He tried to look at her critically, through a stranger's eyes, someone who hadn't seen that horrible picture of her that her parents had given to him and Hikaru. She had lost a lot of weight, and she did look better for it. But she didn't look entirely healthy for it. And her hair was still that weird colour between blonde and brown, without any particular style. Still, there had been that guy in St Ives and now this Greg guy... something must have been attractive about her. He supposed she wasn't bad looking. She maybe even had potential, if she dressed a little better. But as she was... He couldn't see it.

Still, it was decided that he would show them around. He knew the local area after two years of living in Birmingham to study at the University. But that would make him four years older than Ellie, at least. What was he doing, at nineteen or twenty, messing about with a sixteen year old? He'd have to make sure to stick close to Ellie. He didn't trust this guy. And anyway, he had called her Grace- if he mixed her name up with her mom's, what kind of guy was he? No. He didn't trust this guy at all.

"So what do you guys want to do?" Greg asked. "We could go shopping, or we could go look at the cathedrals and the old buildings, or..."

"I don't know... what would you like to do, Kaoru-san?"

"Shop."

"Shop." Ellie passed on.

"Okay, then we're heading the right way." He said. "Shall we?" He took Ellie's arm. What a flirt. Kaoru took her other arm.

"Sure he isn't your boyfriend?" Greg asked Ellie, thinking that Kaoru couldn't understand.

"Sure you're not?" Kaoru shot back, certain he couldn't. Ellie, wedged between them, decided not to comment, instead pointing out the entrance to a large budget clothes shop, an escalator with TK MAXX written above it in large red neon letters. They headed in and found themselves in amongst racks and racks of clothing. Kaoru couldn't help being interested- nothing was of the standard he was used to, of course, but there was some half decent stuff. He would have enjoyed it more if Ellie and Greg hadn't been behind him chattering away. They were probably bored, so he took twice as long.

They visited a lot of clothes shops that day, but none of them brought any. Kaoru didn't find any he wanted and Ellie and Greg didn't seem to be interested. She spent all her money on manga in Nostalgia and Comics instead, while Greg seemed to spend all his on American comics and it was Kaoru's turn to stand around bored. They looked at the peculiar Selfridges building with its strange bulbous shape and the reflective metal disks, and did the tourist bit of posing by the large bronze bull. They played what Greg called 'The New Street game'. This involved trying to get down the high street without being stopped by any canvassers. They all failed. Ellie and Greg both seemed to find it hilarious. Kaoru watched them laughing together and began to wish he hadn't started this 'I don't understand English' game. He was beginning to feel more and more on the edge of things.

But Ellie seemed happy. So what business was it of his? He felt as if it should be, but it wasn't. If she wanted to go off with some pretty-boy university student who probably hadn't looked twice at her when she was fat, wasn't that up to her?

He had a sudden flash of memory, of when they had first met Arai. Hikaru had been rude to him and yelled at Haruhi, because he was jealous, and Kaoru had gently chastised him to stop it for Haruhi's sake. But that had been different. Kaoru had a genuine and valid reason to be worried. Even more so when Greg announced he was taking them for lunch and lead them off the main street down a grimy set of spiral stairs. They emerged next to a car park, at which point he proceeded to take them towards a back alleyway round the side of a Legs 11.

Now Kaoru _really_ didn't like this. This was not a good area. Ellie was happily going along, oblivious. And Greg was taller and stronger than him, if it came to a fight he'd have an advantage. Then again, he looked like a total pansy and Kaoru was determined he could take him. Greg went to enter the alleyway, Ellie by his side. How stupid was she?! This had gone far enough. Kaoru grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her backwards, swinging her behind him.

"That's enough!" He shouted, in English. "Just back off!"

"Um, what?" He looked confused. "Grace, what's wrong?"

"I don't know..."

"Her name isn't Grace!" Kaoru shouted, stepping back and forcing Ellie further away too. "Now shut up and leave her alone!"

"Her name was Grace last time I checked." Greg sighed, folding his arms.

"That's her mom's name!"

"Yeah, and her grandma's, and her great grandma's, and her great-great grandma's and all the other grandmas back to 1795!"

"...What?"

"It's true, Kaoru-san." Ellie said. "It's a family tradition for the oldest girl in every generation to be called Grace. But it was too confusing, so I went by my middle name- Eleanor."

"Your name is Eleanor?!" Kaoru snapped. "I thought it was just Ellie!!"

"Well, everyone has always called me Ellie, so I didn't think it mattered..."

"Are we going to eat or what?" Greg asked. "Gracie, come on."

"I said stay away from her!" Kaoru said, pushing him back roughly as he stepped forward.

"Hey, hey." He said, raising his hands up protectively. "What's the matter? I'm not going to do anything!"

"Oh, sure! Then why are you trying to drag her up some seedy, dirty, back alleyway next to a lap dancing club?! If you think I'm going to let you get her alone-!"

"That's where the restaurant is!"

"Oh yeah, sure! Because all the best restaurants are located in places like this!"

"What, you mean, next to a theatre?" Greg asked, gesturing further up the road to where there was indeed the front entrance of a grand looking theatre. "Or is it the Arcadian that's making you so jumpy?" He pointed across the road to a large Chinese-style gate, leading through to a square with restaurants and seating and fountains. Kaoru looked around but was still unsure.

"You still want her to go up some narrow alleyway with you!"

"And you!" Greg pointed out. "Look, Kaoru, would you mind just taking like three steps forward?"

"Why?"

"So you can see I'm not trying to take her into some back alleyway and mug her." Greg sighed, leading the way. Cautiously, Kaoru took a few paces forward and to his surprise the dark alley way opened up into a wide street with a Cantonese restaurant on one side and a Chinese on the other called 'The Big Wok'. There was a small queue already forming outside, probably drawn in by the promise of 'all you can eat' for £6.

"...Oh." Kaoru said, embarrassed. "Well, who's stupid idea was it to put a restaurant here?!"

"It's very popular." Greg answered. "I don't think anyone else reacts like you did." He laughed brightly and went to join the queue. Kaoru resolved not to speak another word of English from then on whether Greg knew he could understand or not.

"...Thanks, Kaoru-san." Ellie said to him. "It's sweet of you to worry about me."

"Yeah, well you need to be more careful!" Kaoru snapped. "Maybe it's okay this time, but you might not be so lucky next time! Try thinking a little before you go into strange places with some guy!"

"I thought it would be okay if you were there, Kaoru-san." She smiled, and hurried off to join the queue too.

"I can't wait to go home." Kaoru muttered, before sullenly going to join them.

Still, at least the food was good and when they spoke in Japanese he could almost forget Greg was there, joking with them and seemingly a little offended by Kaoru's coldness. Eventually he apologised for laughing, probably just to make Kaoru look bad in front of Ellie. As such, he had no choice but to accept the apology and try to be civil. He had to admit it was a little more fun after that, as they went and looked in the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. He bought a whole bunch of stuff from the gift shop for Hikaru- it was ridiculous how many things they found to stamp 'BMAG' onto. Ellie was more interested in the exhibits, of course, but in a place with as much history as England at least there was plenty to see- even though the most interesting things were the mummies and those, naturally, weren't from England at all. He was almost having a good time.

They walked around a little more to see some of the old buildings and architecture, then finally it was time to go and catch their train to London. Greg walked them back to the station and pulled Ellie's suitcase to the platform for them, showing his own ticket back to his university accommodation to get through the barriers. Finally, he decided it was time to leave, and he hugged Ellie hard, swapping numbers and promising to keep in touch, before kissing her on the cheek before saying goodbye and hurrying away. Ellie watched him go, going red.

"You're blushing." Kaoru said accusingly.

"Hmm?" She said, still watching Greg until he was lost over the top of the stairs.

"You're all red, Grey-chan." He snorted. "Don't go falling for the pretty boy, now."

"Oh, Kaoru-san, don't be silly." She dismissed. "You're the model. You're far more of a pretty boy than he is. Oh, here's the train!"

Kaoru followed her on board, wondering if he should be relieved or just insulted.

*

Hikaru had just come out of the shower- after a few weeks in bed, he had _really _needed it- and found his phone was ringing. It was Tamaki. He picked up.

"Hey Tono."

"...Hikaru."

"You know, you haven't called for a few days. I started to think you were de-"

"Haruhi told me what happened!" Tamaki blurted. "...And I... I was mad at first... when I think of you doing that to your sister, I just wonder how you could dare to so shamelessly-!" He cut himself off and breathed deeply. "...Look, Hikaru, if you love her, I... daddy will accept it! But I won't be easily convinced! You have to make her happy! If you try to force yourself on her or if you ever make her cry I will personally-!"

"Tono." Hikaru butted in, sighing. "Shut up. She's not going to accept me."

"...She rejected you?" He couldn't keep the hopeful note out of his voice.

"Not yet, but I bet she will. I think she likes someone else."

"What?! Who is it?! Daddy will not allow it!! It's bad enough thinking of you with my precious daughter, but for it to be some random hotrod from the street, taking advantage of her cute commoner innocence... I won't stand for it!"

"...Tono, do you really see her as a daughter?" Hikaru asked, eyebrows raised.

"Of course!!!"

"Really?" Hikaru was unimpressed. "Because I'm pretty sure she doesn't see you as a father."

Annoyed, he hung up. What could Haruhi possibly see in a stupid guy like that? He had a feeling Haruhi wouldn't know either. He threw himself moodily down on the bed, wishing Kaoru was here to cheer him up. He knew, deep down, that sooner or later Haruhi was going to reject him. She was the first person other than Kaoru he'd ever really cared about and probably once she'd said no she'd never speak to him again. He'd been such an idiot...

About an hour later, his phone rang again. Before he could even answer, Haruhi's annoyed voice was coming down the line.

"Hikaru, what did you say to Tamaki-senpai?! He won't get out of the closet!"

Hikaru smirked. How like Tono- rather than sulking at home where it would achieve nothing, he had gone over to Haruhi's to sulk in full view. Typical. Well, Haruhi had brought it on herself. Dating Tamaki would be way more trouble than if she'd just said yes to him.

"Just tell him you love him, then he'll come out."

"Hikaru! Stop saying that! Just because I haven't answered you yet doesn't mean-"

"Haruhi. I'm answering me." Hikaru interrupted. "I'm retracting my confession. I've given up. If you really wanted me you wouldn't need time to convince yourself."

"...Hikaru, I'm sorry, I... I'm just not sure how I feel..."

"Well, I'm sure, and hanging on just in case over you isn't gonna help me find someone else." He said, feigning light-heartedness. "Here's a hint for you, though, Haruhi. Put these words in order- you admit Tono like." With that, he hung up on someone for the second time that day.

"...Dammit." He muttered. Was this what growing up was?

Kaoru would have been proud of him, at least. He idly scratched his arm. He was hardly itchy at all anymore. He just hoped his brother would be home soon. It was time to start over.

If one person had gotten into his world, someone else eventually would too. It wasn't like he'd be alone his whole life.

Right?

*

A/N: Poor Hikaru... but he's growing up, right? I'm so proud... :') And was that an actual reference to an event in the anime in this chapter?! Le gasp!

Also, the Big Wok is immortal.


	10. Evening Dress

A/N: It looks like I have to make an apology! All this time, I thought there were asterisks acting as page breaks between scenes. I even checked on the 'Live Preview' and they were there; but I just noticed this morning they haven't been appearing. . Sorry if it was hard to read. That said, please enjoy this chapter with breaks-I-hope-will-appear. This is pretty much the end of what I would consider 'part two'. Time for things to change.

_Disclaimer_: I neither own Ouran, or anything else mentioned in this chapter that comes under copywrite. Obviously. Also, spelling it 'copywright' is probably a bad sign I'm too obsessed with a certain game... (ahem)

Chapter Ten- Evening Dress

"...But come ye back when summer's in the meadow, or when the valley's hushed and white with snow..."

Kaoru woke to the sound of amateur singing, which told him immediately that Ellie was in the kitchen, which meant it must be almost be time for breakfast. He rolled out of bed and went to get dressed, half-listening to her singing 'Danny boy' to herself. It seemed like a weird choice of song, but he had to admit the sweeter, sadder style suited her voice far better than any of the power ballads he'd heard her belting out before. They were set up in a two bedroom flat in the centre of London, that were available to hire for short city breaks. He was used to sleeping in his house, in the extensive grounds, or more recently in the middle of nowhere in the English countryside, which had made it hard for him to sleep over the noise of the busy London roads. Where did so many people have to go at night? Even now, the whoosh of passing cars was constant, the old Irish tune mingling with it and sounding rather out of place. Still, he had only ever heard it on American and British TV shows, and only ever in funeral scenes. How depressing. Time to go shut her up.

"Oi, Grey-chan." He said, marching into the kitchen, pretending to be annoyed. "Your morbid song choice woke me up."

She grinned cockily at him, serving another full English breakfast onto a plate for him, not missing a beat._ "If you'll not fail to tell me that you love me, I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me."_ She finished dramatically, giving a mock bow as she put the plate down before him. He applauded sarcastically.

"Sleeping in peace sounds good to me." Kaoru said. "Between your cat-strangling and the traffic, I barely slept at all."

She laughed, clearly in a good mood and then seemed to think of something. She sat down opposite him at the table, saying as she did "From the East of his small emerald island, he always comes back, groggily, groggily, comes back to sands of a grey metallic soar, to surge of wheels, to dull North circular roar." She giggled again and said "But that's all I can remember."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Kaoru sighed. "You're totally incomprehensible, you know."

She laughed again, warmly. "Sorry, Kaoru-san. It's a poem I had to study at school."

"Right. Eat your breakfast. What have I told you about crash dieting?"

"Yes sir." She chuckled, biting into the bacon butty she had favoured over the full English. He couldn't help but smile. She was always cheerful, but today she was excelling herself. She must just be enjoying herself, glad to be here in London with him. For a moment Kaoru was mentally congratulating herself for making such a difference who, just a few weeks before when he had arrived, had been crying every night. Then he heard her mobile buzz, and her smile widened as she picked it up to read. This was the first time he recalled anyone texting her. She had the phone just for emergencies, or so she had said; and his couldn't get a signal in this country. He had a good suspicion who would be texting her, too, and cut into his bacon more savagely than was really necessary.

"Kaoru-san," She said. "I was telling Greg about our trip to St Ives. He wants to know if you solved the 'I met a man...' puzzle yet."

She looked happy, because of the text. She also looked amused, because she knew he hadn't.

"You know, Grey-chan," He said, rudely. "You shouldn't just fall for someone because they're the first to show an interest."

For a moment, he thought one of his insults had actually hit its target, but as usual the moment passed and he realised it had completely gone over her head.

"That's true." She nodded. "Does that mean you've decided about Victoria?"

Kaoru sighed, getting up. "I'm going to watch TV." He brushed her off, going into the living room of the flat and flopping down on the settee. She could obviously tell he was mad, because he heard the sounds of her washing up without the usual sounds of her singing.

"Kaoru-san." She said, entering the lounge a few moments later. "I'm going to shower, and then why don't we go and see some of the sights?"

"Sure." He said, unable to look at her. Already he was feeling guilty. Greg had turned out not to be such a villain after all. But still, a twenty year old with someone who was sixteen... He sighed uncomfortably, and changed channel.

After the sound of the shower stopped and he heard her coming out, he turned, expecting her to have got dressed in the tiny bathroom. However, she hadn't and was wrapped tightly in a long towel, that covered her down past her knees. Still, she was hurrying back to her room, trying to get out of sight. Kaoru, who was used to seeing his mother's models walking around in nothing more modest than bikinis, wasn't going to let her go that easily. He jumped nimbly over the sofa, looking her up and down in surprise.

"Where were you hiding those?!" He demanded.

"W-what?" She stammered, pulling the towel protectively closer to her chest. "Kaoru-san, I was _hardly _hiding them, I just didn't- oh." The 'oh' was in realisation as, apparently entranced, he tugged at the curl that had appeared in her wet hair. "It happens when my hair is wet, I don't know why but it goes curly. It always straightens out by the time it's brushed and dried."

Kaoru's eyes widened at this sin, and he pushed her into his room.

"Ahh! Hey!"

"Put this on." He said, tossing her a complimentary dressing gown from the bathroom, before closing the door and waiting impatiently. When she was done, Kaoru barged back in, forced her into the room's chair, and set to work. She wondered why he even had hair spray and anti-frizz stuff and who knew what else with him, but then thought it probably explained why his hair always looked perfect. Besides, by the time he was done carefully drying and spraying, she had a beautiful hairstyle, lightly curled.

"I could have done better if I'd had more to work with." Kaoru sighed. "But with what's available, I guess that went pretty well."

"It looks so nice..."

"Yeah." He sighed. "But now you're going to go and ruin it by wearing clothes that are years old and two sizes too big for you."

"There's no point replacing them if they're still fine..." She protested weakly, but Kaoru wasn't going to put up with it.

"We're in London!" He said. "We're going clothes shopping! _Designer _clothes shopping!"

"But... our sight-seeing..." She protested weakly.

"If I want to see Big Ben, I'll watch the TV." Kaoru dismissed. "Besides, we still have tomorrow. Now go get some clothes on."

"Kaoru-san, with the company in trouble, I really can't afford to spend thousands on clothes..."

"If it'll get you out of your usual scruffy outfits, I don't mind paying." Kaoru dismissed. "It's starting to get on my nerves. You're supposed to be the child of an up-and-coming designer and you dress like a country bumpkin. My mom would have disowned you by now, yours must be totally ashamed seeing you dressed like that."

He was teasing and she knew it from his tone, but something must have struck a chord because she followed his orders without further protest.

Getting her a new wardrobe was a harder process than he thought. There was always some problem with what he picked out for her to try on. Sometimes she protested that she didn't like the colour, although he was surely the better judge, others that it would be too revealing even when it would cover her completely. Mostly she protested that it was too expensive, not wanting him to spend so much on her- even when he pointed out that she had been paying for all his train fares, hotels, food and various activities. Eventually, he steered her into a cafe and once they were drinking tea he finally managed to get to the real root of the problem.

"It's just..." She said, playing with the spoon in her saucer, "Everything you're picking out is designed for pretty girls. You know. Thin girls."

Kaoru looked at her but said nothing, so she continued. "M-mom always told me the most important rule of looking good is to dress according to what suits your shape, so..."

"You idiot!" Kaoru snapped, standing suddenly as she trailed off. "Have you not looked in a mirror the last year?!"

"Well, of course, but-"

"Come on." He said, exasperated, grabbing her wrist and pulling him after her, breaking into a run as they left the cafe. "I'll show you!"

"Kaoru-san!" She protested. "Stop!"

"No! Not if you're going to be so stupid!"

"But Kaoru-san, you don't understand-!"

"Yes I do! You haven't lost your fat-girl mentality!"

"It's not that, it's just that I haven't paid for the tea yet!"

"Oh." Kaoru considered, looking back over his shoulder. They had already gone some distance from the cafe. "Better run faster, then!"

They covered some distance around the streets of London before Kaoru found what he was looking for- a formal tailors shop, which made outfits to measure. He dragged her, protesting, inside.

"Can I help you?" A member of staff, dressed in an expensive suit, asked disdainfully as he looked at the two teenagers. He was already glancing at security, expecting that they would have to remove these trespassers in their exclusive world. Fortunately, Kaoru was used to dealing with people like this.

"My name is Kaoru Hitachiin." He said. The words were like magic, and suddenly they were being shown to seats on a deep leather settee, being offered drinks and refreshments. Ellie looked somewhat uncomfortable, but if Grace Grahams got much bigger she would have to get used to this too. Then again, Grace Grahams would probably always be a high-street designer. Hitachiin produced designer wear for their stores, but also produced designs for made-to-measure clothes for the elite, just the sort of thing that would be used in a store like this. A few moments later, after he had made his wishes clear, Ellie was whisked away to be measured and Kaoru was left to his own devices. He occupied himself in looking at the examples of their work, his eye caught by a dark blue evening dress. It was very simple, but as he ran a critical eye over it he could see the cleverness of the design. It was designed to accentuate the natural beauty of the wearer rather than distracting from it, but it would be no use for Ellie. She didn't have the curves, really. But next to it was another evening dress, one that looked more childish and more old fashioned. The bodice was simple and white, connected to the skirt by a thin bit of gold ribbing. Below it, the colour changed ever so slightly, to something that was almost peach or pink. Here and there were tiny white beads, sewn in with gold thread, to make tiny flowers. It was a dress hardly anyone could pull off, but on Ellie, he was sure...

"Oh, I agree, sir, that would look wonderful on your girlfriend." The assistant twittered.

"No it wouldn't." Kaoru shook his head. "The blue one would be better on her."

Then he realised, he had been thinking of Victoria. The man had meant Ellie.

"Oh! No, Ellie's not my girlfriend! I'm just trying to repay her for letting me stay with her." He looked again at the dress. He bet she didn't have any suitable evening wear. "But... when you have her measurements, will you make her one of these?"

"Of course, sir." The man said cheerily. "It will be ready for you to collect in a few days. I'm sure the lady will be thrilled."

"Can you deliver?" Kaoru asked, and on receiving an affirmative, gave them Ellie's address, back in the middle of nowhere outside a small village named Bromyard. Then he thought of Victoria and what she would make of it. "And it has to be secret!"

"Of course, sir." He agreed. "Would you like to pay now or later?"

"I'll pay now." Kaoru said, feeling somewhat guiltily. He hadn't exactly been treating Victoria well, going off on a trip to avoid her until he was sure. He looked at the blue dress again. "Oh... and could you make one of these too? I'm not sure of the exact measurements, but a size 8 should be fine. That needs to go to another address, though." He gave them Victoria's address, and paid.

"If these dresses are gifts, sir, would you like a message put in with them?"

"Oh... no, it doesn't matter." Kaoru said. "I'll be around when they arrive."

"Very good, sir." The man said. "We'll- consult with your mother and see if she has any new ideas."

Kaoru was confused at this non-sequiter until he turned and realised Ellie had returned. She looked embarrassed but bewildered, looking at the copy of her measurements she had been given.

"Well?" Kaoru demanded.

"Well, they did it, but I don't really understand..."

Kaoru looked at the paper, and ran some calculations in his head. In Japan, she'd be around a size 13, which would make her a ten in the USA, which would mean more-or-less a 12 in UK sizes. Either way it was a happy medium. She squeaked in surprise when he told her.

"A twelve?!" She said. "I've never been a twelve!"

"You might even get into a ten, depending on the make." Kaoru said, flicking her in the head. "So now maybe you can stop starving yourself and start 'dressing according to your shape'. No more size 'XL'. It's 'M' for you now."

"Okay!" She said, delighted. Kaoru couldn't help but smile. She was so happy to be an M, yet most of the models were still half her size, S or XS, and they would have seen that dreaded M as a death-sentence. He tried to imagine Victoria being told she needed a size 12. She would have thrown a fit and demanded they measure again. It just showed what difference perspective could make.

"_Now _will you let me buy you some clothes?" He asked, exasperated.

"...alright." She agreed, smiling.

It was still hard work, building her confidence to try things on, getting her to show him, to trust his suggestions and to let him buy the clothes. The problem was, they had different ideas. To her, a wardrobe was for practical purposes- enough clothes to last a week or two, something for going out for a meal in, something for a formal setting, a job interview or in an office. To Kaoru, clothes were there to make you look as good as you could, and being seen by the same people in the same outfit too often was a huge problem. Still, he eventually wore her down and her collection of acceptable clothing gradually grew. As Big Ben struck one-thirty, Ellie finally protested.

"Kaoru-san," she said, tentatively. "I think we should head back to the flat. It's lunchtime and if we get much more it won't fit in the cab..."

He knew she was right. Both of them were laden down with boxes and bags and packages. It was time for a break. "Alright," he said. "But once we've rested up a bit, we'll come back and carry on!"

"We're not done?!" She was shocked.

"Not by half." He sighed. "This is what happens when you have a wardrobe that resembles a bomb hitting a clothes factory. We've had to start from scratch."

"But..."

"Besides, do you think all this will fit in that suitcase of yours? We're going to have to buy another."

"Ahh, you're right!"

"And you still need to get your ears pierced."

"W-what?! Kaoru-san, I'm not going to do that!"

"Oh, but you are!"

"I am not!"

"That's what you think."

"Kaoru-san! No!"

Seeing them arguing like that, was it any surprise that the staff had thought she was his girlfriend, or that everyone passing them on the street thought the same?

"Aww, okay, baby." Victoria cooed. "Call me again tomorrow?"

"Definitely." Kaoru said. "Love you, bye." He hung up, relieved. He had been taking advantage of their rest to call her, and had been somewhat uncomfortable to learn she seemed to be taking the idea of moving to Japan seriously, assuming that she could model for his mother. She didn't seem to realise how expensive the cost of living in Japan was- or was she counting on him to provide for her? He wasn't even sure he wanted to be with her, however good a girlfriend she was, knowing she wouldn't have taken an interest if he hadn't been rich. He felt immensely guilty that she seemed to be so much more serious about their relationship than he was. Maybe her feelings for him were real? After all, it was only Ellie who had said she was like that...

Ellie, at that moment, was in her room. He had told her she had to change into some new clothes before they could go out again, but had challenged her to find the appropriate 'shopping' outfit. He had already rejected two of her suggestions, so she had determined to stay in her room until she was certain. She showed no sign of emerging, so he decided to call Hikaru.

"Hey, Kaoru."

"Hi." Kaoru answered. "How're you?"

"I'm fine." Hikaru answered. "Bit itchy, but mostly, fine."

Kaoru could tell from his tone that he wasn't fine, but it didn't even occur to him to guess that Hikaru had confessed and changed his mind in the last few days, thinking that he was probably in worse health than he claimed. Instead, Kaoru proceeded to fill his brother in on the morning's excitement.

"Oh, yeah!" He said, unable to stop laughing at their antics. "I didn't tell you, we dined and dashed. It was an accident, but Ellie was coming out with all this 'I'm not pretty' stuff, hadn't realised she wasn't fat anymore, so I got annoyed and dragged her out of this cafe but-"

"Sounds like fun." Hikaru spat, and Kaoru suddenly realised his mistake. He wasn't supposed to be having fun, was he? This wasn't meant to be a holiday, it was supposed to be perjury. An enforced separation, worse for him than Hikaru because at least Hikaru had been near-unconscious with fever for most of it. That was what he was supposed to claim, what Hikaru needed to hear.

"Not really." He backpedalled hastily. "I'm just trying to make the best of it, you know? Grey-chan's still about as boring as they come. She just wants to go on walks or go sightseeing all the time. It took ages to convince her to let me buy her some decent clothes, but I was just sick of her walking round like she didn't even realise how much of a mess she looked. It's not like she's ever going to be pretty, but she could at least put some effort in so she doesn't look so plain. You should have seen how she dressed before- downright ugly, you know? And I'm sick of waking up to her 'singing'. She sounds like an electric drill. I don't know how she's not embarrassed, she must just not care what people think. Hey, I bet that's why her parents have been on a two-year long business trip!"

They laughed together at someone's lack of fashion sense, and it seemed normal. Teasing people with his brother was what they did. They were a double act. He had been forgetting that. He had been away too long. They finished the conversation with Hikaru sounding considerably cheered by the idea that Kaoru was as fed up as him. He hung up, and Ellie was finally ready in jeans and a jumper, and they set out for round two of the shopping spree.

Ellie had clearly begun to lose interest by this point, obviously just trying things on and letting him buy them to keep him happy. She was more interested in the landmarks they passed, and persuaded him to go into the National Portrait Gallery. They looked at some of the old paintings, but they weren't art critics and neither of them got much out of it.

"...the lighting is very nice." Ellie made a valiant attempt. "What do you think, Kaoru-san?"

"I think the clothes must have been really loose in those days."

"What?"

"Everyone is falling out of them."

That was true. Almost every painting in the room featured someone who was half-naked with just a few bits of cloth to suggest this wasn't their normal state. Ellie, unable to contain it, began to giggle; which set Kaoru off, until they were glared at by so many patrons that Ellie, blushing, decided to leave.

Things picked up after that. They saw Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament, complete with Big Ben. They managed to see the Gherkin in the distance, the Thames, the Tower bridge, the ill-fated Dome; all from the view at the top of the tower at St Paul's Cathedral. Yes, it had been a long climb, but it had been worth it. It was such a wonderful view. After that, she insisted crossing the bridge to have a look at the Globe Theatre. He was done after about five minutes, and allowed her another five until his incessant complaints about being bored drove her out. All this was interspersed with more shopping. She was enthusiastic as always, but he knew there was one thing that caught her attention more than the rest. In the window of a shop was an evening dress, less of a ball gown then the one he had ordered, more one you would wear to a formal meal or to the opera.

"You want it?" He asked.

"No." She shook her head. "Where would I ever go to wear something like that?"

"Come on, just buy it." He urged, explaining the situations it would be suitable for in great depth.

"But I never go anywhere like that." She said. "Still, I think I'll try it on, at least."

"Good girl." Kaoru approved, and approved of the result. It looked good; but he wasn't convinced it was the best choice. "No," He said. "It looks nice, but the lighter-coloured one would look great."

"No." She shook her head. "I'm buying this one. Myself."

"But I-"

"I'm getting this for me, Kaoru-san, not for you." She said, going to get changed again. "...but you can get me the other one."

Kaoru laughed and rolled his eyes, deciding not to argue. He didn't understand girls, for all his time in the host club. He went and paid for the lighter coloured dress, and with that was finally satisfied. Her clothes shopping was done for today.

The next stop was to buy another large suitcase, seconds before the shop shut, and once their purchases were shoved inside it for easier carrying, Ellie was more than ready for dinner. Kaoru, however, spotted a jeweller's that was still open and pulled her inside, praising London for its insanely long opening hours. They were obviously used to people shopping well into the evening.

"It doesn't hurt!" He tried to convince her.

"I don't want it!" She protested, already seated in the chair provided for ear piercing. The jeweller hovered, uncertain whether to continue or not.

"Look, it'll be over in a second, and then you can accessorise properly for the rest of your life!"

"But... it must hurt..."

"Nope, just like getting an injection." Kaoru said, glancing meaningfully at the jeweller, who seemed to understand.

"Still, I'm not sure I want to- oh!" She jumped, startled, before pouting at them. "You did it. I wasn't ready."

"Better have the other one done to match, don't you think?" Kaoru smirked.

Kaoru hadn't seen the attraction of a giant Ferris wheel, but he had to admit seeing the whole of London laid out before them, lit up with the night's lights, was somewhat spectacular. They were riding the London Eye, standing at the edge of the pod, quietly watching the view slowly slide by. Ellie seemed far away in her own thoughts, her face betraying that they were troubled. She was probably worrying about her parent's company being brought out. But she'd be alright, he was sure. Her parents would be able to sort it out.

He took the time to examine her properly. Now she was dressed well in things that fitted and suited her, lit by the dim lights of London, her hair nicely curled, there was no denying it.

"We did well. The effort paid off." Kaoru said, self-satisfied. "You look beautiful, Ellie."

She looked at him, sharply, surprised. Then she looked away, and barely said another word to him for the rest of the ride or even the journey back to the flat.

"Well," she said. "I'm worn out. If you'll be alright here, I'm going to head to bed."

"Hey." Kaoru was suddenly irritated. "Are you going to tell me what I've done?"

"Done, Kaoru-san?"

"Yeah, as soon as I said you looked beautiful you got all prissy and annoyed."

She opened her mouth to say something, then stopped, changed her mind, and started again. "Kaoru-san, if there was anything worth saying, I would say it."

"It was _meant _to be a compliment." He muttered, and that was the final straw.

"But it was a lie." She said. He didn't recognise her tone, then realised it was anger.

"Just because you have self-esteem issues, don't take it out on me." He dismissed.

"This is nothing to do with self-esteem!" She shouted. "I am sick of you, Kaoru-san!"

"...what?"

"You're always making a fool of me!" She was upset now, weeks of resentment exploding out of her. "You take me out and dress me up like a doll so you can call your brother and tell him how stupid I look!"

Kaoru couldn't say anything. She had heard that?

"I'm sick of it! Ever since you've got here, all you've done is insult me and be rude to me and treat me like your skivvy, using me for your own amusement with Hikaru-san and Victoria and laughing at me because you think 'oh, Grey-chan's so stupid, she doesn't realise when I'm insulting her'. Well, I do realise! I let it go and let it go and let it go because it's so much _easier _to pretend its all over my head!"

"Ellie, I..."

"Don't you mean Grey-chan? Doesn't it suit someone as 'boring' and 'downright ugly' as me?"

"I... I didn't mean for you to hear."

"What does it matter if you did?!" She said. She was starting to cry. "I'm sorry, Kaoru-san, but I can't take any more of this! I thought, it's just because he misses his brother, he'll come around, but it wasn't! You're just rude and obnoxious and think everyone's sole purpose in life should be to pander to you! I thought... I thought we were finally becoming friends, but you're just doing it so you can look down on me, as always!"

"That isn't true!" Kaoru was annoyed now. "Don't act so ungrateful when I've been buying you stuff all day, and don't pretend to understand what's going on with Hikaru! Greg, your parents, all of them; if they wanted to be around you then they _would_! Me and Hikaru have no choice and now I'm stuck here with you!"

"...Then I won't trouble you with my company any longer." She whispered.

"...Ellie..." He sighed. "Look. I only said that stuff to keep Hikaru happy, it doesn't make it true. And anyway, if it bothers you that much, why did you act normal all day?"

"Because I believe that people should always be treated with respect." She said, shortly. "Even if they are just spoilt jerks. Or even stupid, ugly, boring girls."

"I..."

"Good night, Kaoru-san." She went into her bedroom and quietly shut the door. Kaoru sighed angrily and threw himself on the settee, turning the volume up loud on the TV so she shouldn't be able to sleep and he wouldn't have to listen to her sobbing. So she had known all along, had she? So all those attempts to get her to hate him when he had first arrived hadn't been water off a duck's back after all. She had been storing them all up, to use against him and make him feel like a bad guy. He felt a stab of resentment. So what if he had been rude? She should have said something. So what if he had been a little two-faced? So had she, pretending to be all happy and glad to see him, while secretly hating him.

They were showing _The Phantom of the Opera _on television. He changed channel. He wasn't going to waste all night worrying about _her_.

Still, it was some time before he got to sleep that night.

A/N: Oh my. To be continued. :)


	11. Red Rose

A/N: An important chapter this time, but I'm in a rush so I'll let it speak for itself. Let's just hope my breaks will work this time! Usual disclaimer applies.

Chapter Eleven- Red Rose

Kaoru took his time getting dressed the next morning, not sure if Ellie was up or not. He thought he could hear her moving in the kitchen, but there was no music playing and no singing. Had their argument last night really affected her that much?

But it wasn't just last night. He'd obviously been getting to her for some time.

Still, he had tried to apologise and she hadn't accepted it. Somehow he thought that if he tried again it would just turn into another argument. Better to pretend everything was normal and be on his best behaviour until she calmed down. He went out and saw she was indeed in the kitchen of the London flat.

"Morning, Ellie."

"Good morning, Kaoru-san." She said, smiling. But he knew now. This wasn't her warm, genuine smile. This was the forced kind.

But then, she had so often smiled at him genuinely, even when he hadn't exactly deserved it. She was too nice, if anything. If she wasn't, maybe she wouldn't get hurt so much. She took everything so personally. Still, his heart stirred guiltily when he saw her eyes were puffy. How much had she cried?

"I didn't have any more bacon or milk, so I'm afraid it's just toast and egg this morning." She said, putting the plate in front of him.

"That's alright." Kaoru answered. "Thanks."

They ate in silence. They had been reduced to civilities, like an old married couple who had argued and were now tip-toeing round each other. When that happened to his parents, one of them would usually break down and then they'd make out and everything would be fine. He put that particular plan out of his mind, he didn't think Victoria would like it. Not that he would, either.

They continued to eat in silence.

Finally, a jolly ringtone broke the silence. Some happy J-pop anime theme, probably, from _K-on _or _Cardcaptor Sakura _or something like that. It was Ellie's phone, of course, and she excused herself to go and answer it. As expected, it was Greg. Kaoru pushed the toast crumbs round his plate in a mood as she chatted cheerfully with him in the kitchen. She wasn't cheerful, so why was she pretending to be? She was also being pretty ungrateful, considering she wasn't even wearing any of the clothes he'd bought for her the day before. She just looked her usual dowdy self. What did Greg see in her?

"Oi, Grey-chan." He called through. "We haven't got all day. I thought you wanted to go sightseeing."

"...I'm sure you'll manage without me, Kaoru-san." She said, unable to look at him. She didn't seem angry, just upset. Couldn't she see he was trying to reconcile? But if she wanted to be like that then fine. Not like he needed her.

"Fine, I'll go on my own!" Kaoru snapped, grabbing his shoes and doing just that. The door slammed behind him and Ellie missed whatever Greg had just said to her.

"...Grace? You there?" He asked.

"Oh, sorry." She said. "I was just seeing Kaoru-san off."

"Aren't you going with him?"

"No, not today. I... I'm not feeling well." Why was she covering for him? She should just tell Greg that Kaoru was a jerk. But somehow, she didn't want him to agree...

"Lovesick?" Greg teased.

"What?! No!"

"I didn't think so." He sighed. "Grace, you've never really liked a boy, have you?"

"...Please call me Ellie."

"Ellie, you're sixteen. It's okay to like someone. Maybe not that Kaoru guy, but in general. Even if you're pretty sure nothing will happen, you have to let your heart get broken sometimes or you'll never get over your feelings."

"Haha, okay." She laughed. "I'll bear that in mind if I ever find someone to like."

For some reason, he sighed deeply. "Yeah, me too."

"What's wrong?"

"...You're always running away, Grace. Sometimes I wonder if you're ever going to stop."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"I just want to get out of this stupid room."

"Well, Hikaru-san, I don't think it will be much longer." The doctor said, checking his arms and legs. "In fact, I would go so far to say that you're completely recovered."

"Really?!"

"Yes. I don't think there would be any danger of you passing the condition onto others." Bidding them goodbye, he left.

"Finally." Hikaru snorted. It wasn't any surprise, he'd been feeling fine for over a week now and had really only been confined to his room in case it reappeared. He turned to his mom. "See?"

"It's better to be sure on these things, sweetheart." She replied, kissing his forehead as if he was still five. He squirmed in protest. "Why don't you call your friends and go out somewhere? It would do you good after all this time."

"Can I call Kaoru first?"

"I'm not even sure he'll be awake. What time is it in England?"

"But he can come home now, right?"

"Yes, he can." She nodded. "As soon as he's ready."

"He didn't want to go! He'll be ready now!"

"He might be having fun."

"He wouldn't. Not without me." Hikaru answered sulkily, suspecting himself that he was wrong but not wanting to believe it.

"Hikaru... sooner or later you need to start living separate lives...I'm starting to worry."

"So is that why you made him leave?"

"No, of course not!" Then she smiled gently. "Of course, it did make me happy that you were spending time alone with Haruhi-chan and the others, having your own friends. And you say Kaoru's got a girlfriend! Imagine that!"

"She sounds like she'll be a right pain." Hikaru grumbled sullenly.

His mom ruffled his hair. "I'm sure Kaoru will come running right home. Don't worry."

"Tell him to come back tonight!"

"Don't you think he should at least have time to say goodbye to his girlfriend and the Grahams girl?"

"...fine. Tell him to come home tomorrow."

"Good boy."

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No-one walked the streets of London alone. Everywhere Kaoru looked were groups of people. Groups of friends seeing the sights during the summer, huge lines of tourists on a package tour, boyfriends and girlfriends, husbands and wives, parents and children. Even the sharp-suited business men walked along in serious conversation with other sharp-suited business men, even the joggers jogged in groups. The only person he saw on their own was an older woman, walking her dog. She turned into what appeared to be a park. St James' park, he realised as he passed the sign at the entrance. It was hard to believe a place like this was right in the middle of a city. Still, however nice it was, it wasn't a patch on the rolling Herefordshire countryside with Worcester in one direction and the Malverns in the background...

"Are you following me, young man?" The dog walker asked as Kaoru reeled from the shock of realising he had become a country boy. England really invaded your head.

"What? Oh, no! Well, yes. But, um, I didn't mean to... sorry, I wasn't thinking."

"Obviously not." She smiled, amused, and suddenly he thought this was what Ellie was going to look like in fifty, sixty years. Old only in body, as pleased to see each new day as the last.

Unless Ellie was so mad she was miserable forever... or was he flattering himself?

"You look a little lost, dear." She said kindly. "I take it you're not a Londoner?"

"Not even a Briton." He answered. "I came here to stay with..." He was going to say 'my friend'. He probably couldn't now. "...someone. Near Worcester. We came here for a few days."

The old woman's eyes twinkled. Again, he was unnervingly reminded of Ellie. Victoria always looked at him searchingly, like she was desperate to know what he was thinking, like she really cared. Ellie always looked at him as if she already knew and wasn't too fussed if he said she was right or not.

"And this 'someone' isn't with you?"

"No, ma'am."

"Is she someone special?"

"No." Kaoru denied. "I have a girlfriend, not her."

"You don't have to be in love for someone to be important to you. Friends are special too." She pointed at the dog at her feet. "Like Cassie here. The old girl doesn't say much, but I've outlived everyone else. You have to hold on to what you've got."

"I'm fine, thanks." Kaoru said, curtly, annoyed at her interference.

"Sorry, son, when you get as old as me you'll talk and talk to anyone." She laughed. "If it's sights you're looking for, Buckingham Palace is just up that way. Go say hi. The flag's up, that means they're in."

Kaoru went, for lack of anything better to do, but to him it was just a big house. Without Ellie there doing the tourist guide bit, he didn't see what there was to look at. He tried to remember all that she had told him the day before, but it was no good. He examined it for a few minutes, but growing sick of watching everyone happily taking group snaps of their friends and family, he left soon after he arrived and wandered aimlessly. He couldn't go back to the flat yet, Ellie would think he couldn't entertain herself without him. Still, without her there, he had no idea where to go or what to do. He saw a Waterstones bookshop that claimed to contain a Costa Coffee, and went in for a drink, trying not to think about Ellie, the argument, or how much he wanted to go home right now. To distract himself, and annoyed by Greg's jibe the day before, he tried to focus on the St Ives puzzle.

_On my way to St Ives, I met a man with seven wives. The seven wives had seven sacks, the seven sacks had seven cats, the seven cats had seven kits- kits, cats, sacks and wives, how many people were going to St Ives?_

What kind of puzzle was _that_? He'd already suggested all the answers it could sensibly be. He'd even accounted for the extra person going in the speaker. It was just stupid. He sighed deeply, then realised he had been sitting there sighing with his overpriced coffee going cold in front of him, and he was attracting some strange looks. He got up and went to look around the store.

He could say one thing for the English, they certainly knew how to set up a bookshop. There was a quiet and refined atmosphere, but a relaxed one, like a library. The books were laid out like one too, and the floors were all carpeted and patterned. They had sections, neatly organised and arranged, for just about everything. In a serious shop like this, he was surprised to find they had a manga section. Manga was only just gaining popularity in England, Ellie had told him, with most people still saying 'isn't that a kind of fruit?' when you mentioned it. They had a good book case full. Not much in Japan, but a lot here. She would have loved this. He started flicking through, wondering how different the English translations were to the Japanese ones. Some of these titles he remembered seeing Ellie's room, way back when she had been busy wading down to Bromyard and he had nosed about her house. They had _Cardcaptor Sakura_. Those were the pride of her collection, she'd said, her favourites and some of the hardest to find. He had a flick through the last volume. He didn't see what was so great about such a girly book. Except... At the end, the girl was racing to the airport to say goodbye, determined to tell the boy her feelings. Desperate to get there in time. Desperate not to lose him.

Standard shoujo manga stuff, he knew, but something about it just wouldn't let him dismiss it. Because he wasn't trying. Ellie was his friend. Despite his rudeness and unwillingness, until now, she'd been unfailingly kind and forgiving, gently leading him to have fun even when he didn't want to. Yes, she hadn't opened up to him and yes, she wasn't forgiving him anymore, but she was his friend. Just his, not Hikaru's. The first friend he had made on his own, without even meaning to. She'd said horrible things about him, but then he had said horrible things about her.

And maybe she didn't mean them anymore than he did. Maybe she didn't think he was a stuck up, spoilt jerk. Maybe she'd just said that because he'd been acting like it at the time.

So maybe... maybe she hadn't been pretending all this time. Maybe she had really been his friend, but just thought he had been pretending.

And if that was true, maybe he could still put it right. Still apologise. Still have a friend of his own, whether Hikaru liked it or not. Maybe it wasn't too late. Maybe he didn't have to throw it all away!

But he didn't know how to apologise. He wasn't good at it, he never knew what to say. Then the answer came, blindingly obvious.

He needed to get to the nearest tube station. Right now.

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He stood in the lobby, looking at the people pouring in and feeling anxious. Would she get here on time? Would she even come? If she didn't accept this as an apology, he didn't see what else he could do. The ball was well and truly in her court after this.

Then he saw her, coming across the lobby, in the casual evening dress he had chosen, the lighter coloured one. She hadn't seen him yet, was looking back and forth. She looked happy. He nearly sagged in relief. So it hadn't been too cheesy. Well, it had been, and he hated himself for doing it, but at least it had worked.

It had taken him sometime to make his way to the West End of London through the underground labyrinth of the tube system. Even once he was there, it took him sometime to find a theatre that was showing it. But London didn't let him down, and yes, although _the Phantom of the Opera _was currently out of season in the big theatres, it was being performed at one of the somewhat smaller ones. It was fully booked, of course, but offering them several times what the seats were worth was enough to make them move some people around and find two spare seats together for the 2:30PM matinee. The problem was, he didn't have time to go to the flat and get her, not on public transport. He had been walking the streets, searching for a phone box, when he had seen the florists, which offered a courier service. That was when he had the idea.

"I need a rose." He said, going in. "I need it delivered, fast."

"We don't normally do it for a single plant..."

"I'll pay for a bouquet, then, if it'll make the difference!"

It certainly did. He was, after all, paying for a dozen roses while only getting one. When she asked what colour bow he wanted on it and he said black, she cottoned on.

"Oh, Phantom of the Opera style?"

"Yeah." Kaoru said, relieved she wasn't laughing. "I haven't got time to go back and tell her we got seats and get back here again, so I need you to put a card on telling her to meet me at Her Majesty's Theatre by 2:30."

"Now, you mustn't do things by halves." The woman scolded. "You're sending her a romantic gift, not a text message!"

"It's not romantic, it's an apology!"

"Even so, we need to phrase it more... phantom-ly, don't you think?"

And so Ellie ended up with a single rose, wrapped with a black ribbon, telling her in cursive script to '_Come to Her Majesty's Theatre at 2:30PM today, and you shall know me'. _ He didn't much like that message, but as long as she understood it. Apparently she had. She spotted him and smiled. He waved awkwardly. Now he just had to get through saying he was sorry without losing his temper or blaming her and...

She ran over and hugged him so hard it was more like a rugby tackle. Surprised, he hugged her back somewhat awkwardly. Did he still need to say it? Maybe just in case.

"Look, Grey-chan, I'm sorry about before-"

"It's alright, I'm sorry I lost my temper, I-"

"It's fine, I guess I deserved to get yelled at. But I didn't mean-"

"I didn't mean-" She said at the same time, and they laughed.

"You got me a ticket to see Phantom!" She said happily, calming down. "That more than makes up for the argument! I just feel I should do something nice for you, Kaoru-san!"

"How about buying me dinner after the show? I didn't even have lunch."

"Done and done." She smiled. "And ice cream in the interval!"

"Deal." Kaoru answered, noticing that people were starting to move into the theatre. "Come on, let's go." He took her wrist and hauled her in.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"The Phantooooooom of the Opera-"

"No, no, it's 'phaaaaaaaantom'. The first note is the long one."

"Like it makes a difference!"

"Of course it makes a difference, Kaoru-san! Simon Cowell would never choose you like that!"

"You think he'd chose me anyway?"

"No, but Lois Walsh might."

They both laughed, sitting together on the sagging sofa back in the flat, with _Britain's Got Talent _on the television mostly being ignored. When they had gotten back from the theatre and dinner they had been too tired to do much else, so had just been chilling in front of the television. Ellie, as expected, had loved Phantom. Kaoru spent as much time watching her reaction as he did watching the show. She looked like an idiot through most of it, with her mouth hanging open as she leaned forward, entranced, but at least she enjoyed it. And Kaoru found that he enjoyed it too. She was overexcited at dinner, dissecting every part of the show and eventually getting so giggly she almost fell off her chair. Then again, he was laughing hard too. It was fun.

"I'm glad you're more cheerful, Kaoru-san." She admitted. "I was worried you'd just be worried about Hikaru-san all the time you were here, or that I really was boring you..."

"No, I had fun, even though I didn't want to." He said. "What about you?"

"I've had fun! Can't you tell?!"

"Tonight, yeah." He said. "But seeing you really letting go like this... makes me wonder if you were really enjoying yourself before or if you were just trying to make yourself enjoy it."

"...Kaoru-san..." Suddenly, abruptly, she was upset. "I was enjoying myself. Really. There's just... there's just a lot on my mind..."

"Yeah, more than you're telling anyone." He sighed. "You're finally eating properly, but you weren't. Getting drunk in St Ives. Crying at night. I don't understand it at all. You're so nice, yet you seem to hate yourself."

She said nothing for a minute, then burst into tears.

"Finally." Kaoru said, gently. "If you bottle stuff up it all gets on top of you and then you end up exploding at some poor guy who doesn't deserve it then has to pay a fortune to go to the theatre, hint hint." She laughed slightly through her sobs as he handed the box of tissues over. "So what's up?"

"I... I'm just worried about the company, Kaoru-san. It's going to be taken over, and I don't know how to stop it or what I'm going to live on... even the designs got rejected. I just don't know what to do. I don't know why I thought I could do this."

"...do what?" Kaoru asked. "This is so like you. You just take on everyone else's troubles. Your parents will deal with it."

"No they won't." She said, calming down and wiping her eyes.

"They will, because they'll have to. It's their company." He paused, then wondered if she was still upset about what he'd said. "Look, I... I didn't mean what I said, you know. I'm sure they've had a good reason to be away this long. But they'll come back and sort it out. They won't let their company go this easily, not unless there's enough to provide for you all..."

"They can't do anything about it. There's only me."

"France isn't exactly another planet. You can just-"

"Kaoru-san! Don't you find it strange that they've been gone so long? That they've never even called?!"

"...what?"

She took a deep breath, then blurted: "My parents are dead. They died."

Kaoru blinked at her. Then she burst into tears again, tears that wouldn't stop. She was crying uncontrollably.

"D-dead?! But they can't be! I mean... the company..."

"I've been running it!" She said. "I... I was only fifteen when they died... I didn't want to go into care! I just... I didn't tell anyone... I... this is... the first time..." She shook her head, unable to speak.

She was in such a state she could only speak in half-sentences and half of it wasn't understandable. Still, he more or less got the picture. Her parents had gone away so often, they had given her their bank account details, computer passwords, everything she would need to hold the fort. All the bills had been paid by direct debit from her father's account. She had been trying so hard to keep it going, but she just couldn't. Her designs weren't good enough, she wasn't good enough at business. And all this time, she had kept it all to herself. No-one in England, except her, had known that they were dead. She just carried on as usual, not admitting it to anyone, not even herself. It had been over a year, and this was the first time she had cried for them.

What an idiot.

"Grey-chan..." Kaoru mumbled, somewhat in shock and completely at a loss for what to say. He wished Tamaki was here. He would know what to do, how to comfort. Kaoru wondered if he should hold her hand, but suddenly, the small gap between them on the settee seemed like a vast chasm, an impassable difference in experience and emotion.

"...they... they were heading to the airport... they didn't look properly. They were holding hands. They both... they just... they stepped out in front of.... the bus..."

"....I..."

"....Kaoru-san." She whispered. "You and your family were the last to speak to them."

She was right. They must have died just hours after leaving the photograph of Ellie with his parents. What had he been doing then? Looking at the picture and wrinkling his nose at her plumpness? Criticising her parents for raising such an unfashionable daughter? Or had they already forgotten all about it?

These thoughts were enough to bridge the gap and his awkwardness was washed away by the rush of pity that seemed ready to wrench his heart right out of his ribs, and then she was in his arms and he was holding her and she was crying so hard and all he wanted to do was stop her crying, make the hurt go away, undo this thing that had happened and ruined everything.

"Don't cry, don't cry." He whispered, urgently. "Don't cry, Ellie, please don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry, Ellie." He stroked her hair, but what good did that do? He wanted to tell her it was okay, that they somehow weren't dead, or that it wasn't going to hurt any more, that they would come back, anything. He couldn't even tell her that they had been happy when they left, he had barely said two words to them. Why hadn't he spoken to them properly? Why hadn't he _realised_? Why couldn't he think of a single thing to say that would comfort her?! "Don't cry." He repeated, over and over, a mantra. He put his hands on her cheeks, under her chin, gently pressed his lips to her forehead, her hair, mumbling all the time the never-ending ostinato- "Don't cry. It's okay. It's okay."

He wasn't sure how it happened. Neither was she. No-one could say who moved first, whether his hands went around her neck before she hugged him harder, whether she raised her head so her lips would touch his or if he, desperate to comfort her, pressed his to hers.

Either way, it wasn't like his kisses with Victoria. This, as Ellie would say, was entirely different kettle of fish. It wasn't all beating hearts and racing blood, though that was there too. There was something else, some deeper desire, something that meant something-

There was a knock at the door. They pulled apart.

They stared, disbelievingly, at one another. "I..." Kaoru started, but even he didn't know how he was going to finish that sentence. Ellie was running her fingers over her lips as if she couldn't believe what they had just done. Kaoru couldn't either.

"Victoria..." She started.

The door knocked again, startling Ellie into movement as she fled from the room and into her own. Kaoru didn't follow her. He felt like running himself. Instead, he opened the door.

"There's a phone call for you, sir." Said the landlord of the place. "Downstairs. She's called several times today."

Kaoru froze, a deer in headlights. It was Victoria. She knew, somehow. She must know. How could she know? But why else would she call? And why was he relieved? He shouldn't be relieved...

He went downstairs on auto-pilot, his mind full of Ellie and Victoria and kissing them both. He didn't even register who it was at first.

"Who?"

"Your mother. Really, Kaoru, it hasn't been that long!"

"Mom?! What is it?! Did something happen?"

"No, don't be silly. But Hikaru's better. It's time to come home."

"....come home...?"

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The next morning, Kaoru went to sit down at breakfast, feeling awkward. She obviously was too, because she wasn't looking him in the eye.

"We still have some time before the train home." She offered. "We could go look around a gallery or something."

"Actually, Grey-chan, my mom called last night. Hikaru's all better, so... I'm heading back to Japan."

"Oh. Alright. We might be able to get an earlier train, then, so we can get back home and get the rest of your things, and then you might be able to get a flight tomorrow..."

"No, Ellie, mom wanted me home, so they found a flight for this evening. From London."

"Oh."

"We'll send a courier to your house for the rest of my stuff later."

"Oh, alright."

Silence reigned. Kaoru tried to study her reaction. They accidentally caught one another's eyes.

"....Are you going to be okay?"

"Of course, I'm always okay." She smiled, embarrassed. "That little crying spell did me the world of good! I'm ready to face the world!"

"That's good." He paused. "...is it okay for me to leave so suddenly? I mean, we haven't..."

"It's alright." She said. "...In fact, I think it's for the best."

"...bye, Grey-chan."

"Goodbye, Kaoru-san."

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A/N: ahahaha, attack of the cliché! Did anyone not see that coming? Oh well, I hope you enjoyed it. I will be going into more detail in the next chapter :) It's not over yet.


	12. Parcel

A/N: A mostly filler/reflective chapter this time, just wrapping some stuff up. :) Disclaimer, as always, applies.

Chapter Twelve- Parcel 

She was right. This had to be for the best.

Kaoru gave a sigh of relief and settled down into the airplane seat. It was probably best to leave now, before things got any more confusing. He didn't know how or why he had ended up kissing Ellie. He had just been comforting her and it had gotten out of hand. Maybe she had been the one to kiss him and he just didn't want to push her away? Either way, it hadn't meant anything, it was just them getting carried away in the moment. At least she had understood that. Their last day together had been more or less normal. Neither of them even mentioned it, they just busied themselves in packing and sorting things out. It was all okay. She wasn't mad, and she wasn't upset.

As far as he knew, anyway. Obviously it wouldn't be the first time she'd hidden it if she was upset...

He pushed the thought away. If she didn't want to tell him she was upset then she had obviously decided it wasn't worth discussing. He was pretty relieved about that. He was just glad he'd made up for being mean to her before he left. They had parted as friends, but with no promises or even suggestion of writing or calling or e-mailing. That was okay. It would be better just to leave this whole summer behind him.

Victoria, on the other hand, would be livid that he'd left without saying goodbye. He had thought about it, but somehow it didn't feel right. He couldn't believe how badly he had treated her, getting involved without really knowing her, then running away, then kissing another girl. Yes, he was running again, but he didn't want to pretend he'd done nothing wrong. On the other hand, the thought of her being angry at him, rejecting him, not forgiving him... it was painful. He still had feelings for her. But how could he have asked her to stay with him now? This was so messed up. It was better to cut it off clean.

He sighed again and settled down to try and sleep. He couldn't wait to be back in Japan, back where he belonged, with the people he should be with; and away from this crazy country that made him do crazy things.

He had always prided himself on being more mature than his brother. Now it seemed like he was utterly wrong.

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Ellie unlocked the door to the house. She had only been away a little over a week, but it seemed like a lot longer. Coming in to an empty house now seemed strange, too. For two years now she had been alone here, but in just a few weeks Kaoru had made it seem natural for someone else to be there. The place seemed bigger now, though she supposed she would get used to it. She was too tired to unpack now, it had seemed a long journey. She was going to fix something to eat and then go to bed.

As she went into the kitchen, she saw the puddle on the table, dripping onto the floor. She had put a patch over the hole in the ceiling, but it had still been leaking a little. It seemed it had leaked enough while she was gone that the washing up bowl she'd put underneath it had overflown and spilt onto the table and floor. She picked her way over to the table and found her worst fears confirmed. The wooden table had served them well for years, but leaving that amount of water on it for that long had formed a ring of rot. Just great. She left her bags in the hall and went to fetch the mop, beginning the dreary work. As she pulled out the chairs to get under the table, she noticed the smallest spot of orange, a left over stain from where Kaoru had exploded her microwave. She'd have to replace it. But would she have the money now?

Suddenly it was as if all her strength had left her. Two years pretending everything was okay was no easy feat. She sank down into one of the chairs and knew she would miss him terribly. Or at least she would miss the distraction. She wondered about the house. Would they let her keep it or would she be put into social care despite being sixteen? Would the bank repossess it and throw her out? She should have just sold the company the moment her parents had died, when it was worth something. She had been stupid to think she could run it all on her own; she had driven it into the ground and now by the time she'd paid off all the taxes and bills there wouldn't be nearly enough left. She would have to go and look for a job tomorrow...

And another thing. Why was last night, over Kaoru, the first time she had cried for her parents? How unfeeling was she? It was like she'd been pretending they were just away on business, because it was easier that way.

"Coward." She said, and the word hung in the silent and empty house. A glance at the clock told her Kaoru would have been back in Japan by now. She hoped he was happy to be back, reunited with his family and friends, and not sparing them a thought.

She decided not to spare him another thought, either. It was time to live her own life, on her own. She had to get used to it sometime.

"...bother the mopping." She said, dropping it on the floor. Instead she went into the living room, over to her mother's piano, and shut the music on the stand, putting it back in the space in the music stool.

It wasn't much, but it was a start. Time to stop running.

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"Kaoru!"

Kaoru whipped around. He hadn't been able to see them in the crowds at arrivals, but there was Hikaru, running towards him.

"Hikaru!" Kaoru replied, suddenly feeling a rush of emotion. With everything that had been happening recently, he hadn't thought much about his brother. Still, he had missed him desperately, somehow realising it now he saw him again.

"...hi." Hikaru said, stopping short in front of him.

"Hello..." Kaoru said, suddenly wary. He had been expecting a hug. Was Hikaru mad at him? If he went to embrace his brother, would he be rejected.

"...welcome back, I guess." Hikaru added moodily, looking away.

"...Hikaru..." Kaoru reached out to him, but then dropped his hand uncertainly. A few weeks had destroyed the bond of a lifetime, ripped a gulf between them. He looked away too. This was not the reunion he had been looking forward to. What if things couldn't be repaired?

"So what?" Hikaru demanded. "You're so desperate to be back with _Victoria _you can't even pretend to be happy to see me?"

"What?" Kaoru answered. "I thought you were mad at me!"

"Well, maybe I am!" Hikaru shot back. Kaoru knew he was on the verge of storming off. But he knew something else, too. However possessive Hikaru was and however much he struggled, he was underneath it all kind hearted; he wanted to be better than he was. He'd have enough time now to get the yelling out of his system. If he hadn't forgiven him yet, he wouldn't have brought it up for fear of causing an argument. However he was acting, or whether he wanted to forgive him or not, Hikaru had accepted what had happened.

"It's good to see you." Kaoru grinned, hugging him. Hikaru hugged him back tightly, and suddenly Kaoru realised there had been more wrong on the phone than just Hikaru being jealous. "Hikaru? What happened?"

"Don't leave again." Hikaru grumbled. "Makes me do stupid things."

"...what did you do?"

"...confessed to Haruhi..."

"What?"

But there was no time for elaboration. His parents had gotten fed up with waiting and came over for their turn at hugs. He was home and intensely relieved, though it sounded like he had a lot to catch up on. He was so relieved it made up for the tiny pang of regret lying in wait around the edges.

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They should have bought a new wardrobe home too. Kaoru had thought to get her an additional suitcase to take her clothes home in, but what was she supposed to do with it now? Ellie was sure the bottom of her drawers were going to collapse, and she still had several items to find room for. If they were just her own old things, she could have shoved them all in willy-nilly, without thinking about it. But these were gifts, and Kaoru would be upset if she didn't take care of them properly.

Then again, she was never going to see him or think about him again and definitely not think about kissing him.

"Arrgh!" She bundled up the shirt in her hands and shoved it in, slamming the drawer shut. She was blushing furiously with shame. What had possessed her to kiss him? She'd be lucky if he didn't think she was a total slut...

Her phone rang just then, and she answered it thankfully, glad to get away from her thoughts.

"Hi, Ellie!" Victoria chirruped. "I just wondered if you guys were home yet?"

"...I'm home." Ellie answered. Should she tell her what she'd done? But Victoria would hate her for it, and if she found out her parents were dead and the company doomed... sometimes she wished Victoria was a friend without strings, one she could tell anything and gain forgiveness. She couldn't tell her, not yet. She needed a friend.

How selfish. Ellie thought, miserably. And cowardly. She was just running away, again...

"Ellie, are you listening?" Victoria demanded. "Hellooooo?"

"Sorry, Vicky." Ellie answered, guiltily. "What was that?"

"I wanted to know if I could come over and see Kaoru tomorrow!"

"...Victoria, Kaoru went home."

"What do you mean?" Victoria demanded.

"He went home. Back to Japan."

"Oh, you fibber!" Victoria laughed. "Come on, he wouldn't just leave me without saying goodbye!"

"It was very sudden, there wasn't time to-"

"There wasn't time to call?" Victoria screeched. "Don't be stupid, Ellie, of course he had time! He just dumped me!"

"..."

"...so where does this leave me?" Victoria sighed.

"Nowhere, I guess."

"Hah." She snorted. "Well fine! Let him leave! He was only ever in the way anyway! He couldn't handle me, I was thinking about dumping him anyway!"

Ellie listened to Victoria's angry staccato only half-attentively. Victoria hated being dumped. Ellie herself had never experienced it, being as she had never gotten far enough with a guy. She hadn't told Kaoru this, but Greg had confessed to her once. She hadn't been ready and the timing was bad, when he was about to leave for University. It had come to nothing. And now she had given her first kiss to someone she would never see again, someone who had been dating her best friend...

"Idiot."

"I know!" Victoria agreed. "But, you know, that's the first thing you've said this whole time! Aren't you going to help me bad mouth him?"

"...mmm."

"Oh, aren't you enthusiastic?" She sounded peeved. "Heeey, you didn't fall in love with him, right?" she teased. "You eloped, didn't you? And he dumped you like he dumped me?"

"You got it." Ellie deadpanned.

Victoria laughed heartily. "You do cheer me up." She said fondly. "I think if you two got together, it would be the end of the world. You're like a nun, Ellie, you just love everyone!"

Ellie wasn't feeling too loving at that moment, but she laughed too. "I do my best."

"Oh well, time to go and get some beauty sleep." Victoria said. "Let's just forget that stupid ass ever came here." She still sounded disappointed. Either she had been surprisingly keen on Kaoru or keen on joining his company. Who knew which? Ellie said goodnight and hung up, only to find a text from Greg had come through while she was on the phone.

_From Greg at 10:44PM:_

_Some girl from anime society wants me to act out Wallflower episode 3. Said she'd pay me in merchandise for your birthday present. What do you think? _

_From Ellie at 11:07PM:_

_I say go for it :P I want more DVDs! _

_From Greg at 11:08PM: _

_Oh, haha. Am I your DVD hooker? _

_From Ellie at 11:09PM:_

_Since when have you watched anime? Especially Wallflower_

_From Greg at 11:10PM:_

_Since I knew you watched it :P_

_From Ellie at 11:11PM:_

_Will you call me? _

_From Greg at 11:12PM:_

_First thing in the morning. Whatever's bothering you will look better when you've had some sleep :) Sleep well xxx_

_From Ellie at 11:13PM:_

_You too x_

_From Greg at 11:14PM:_

_Not without you :P _

Ellie wondered how he knew her so well, and why he still hadn't given up on her. Or maybe she just shouldn't have given up on him.

_From Ellie at 11:15PM:_

_Night xxxxxxxxxxx_

She turned the phone off and went to bed. This was all going to work out. She would make it work out.

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Jet lag apparently hadn't crossed the mind of Kaoru's friends who were waiting for him back at the house. Never mind the fact it was midnight in England and he hadn't slept yet, here it was after nine in the morning and apparently that was the time for a welcome back party; for both him and his brother. It had been a while since the host club had all been together and for Tamaki that was reason enough not to delay by even a few hours. Haruhi must have rejected Hikaru and felt bad, Kaoru surmised, because she was convinced into a dress with surprisingly little difficulty. Tamaki couldn't keep his eyes off her at first, not until the twins distracted him with teasing. It had been some time since they had gone Tono-baiting. Kyouya, as usual, remained largely detached, watching events and intervening only when he had to, although wiping the floor with them all at blackjack. If he was cheating, no-one knew how. His only real rival at cards was Mori, who showed a surprising knack for 'poor man's poker'- in consideration for Haruhi, they were betting only in imaginary points. She didn't seem particularly appreciative. Honey lost before even Tamaki did and ate cake. It was just like old times, it was fun.

Kaoru, exhausted, sat back and watched proceedings as the party began to slow down a little. Haruhi had been trying to explain a game called 'spoons'. Hikaru had insulted it and therefore inadvertently her, Tamaki tried to tell him off and was making it worse, Kyouya had lost interest and started to play solitaire, watched by Mori, the only other Host Club member with the patience for it. Honey came and sat next to Kaoru.

"You look tired, Kao-chan." He said, kindly. "It's okay if you need to go nap now."

Kaoru checked his watch. The party- if it even deserved to be called that- had been raging for hours. It was almost six AM in England.

"I guess I will." He nodded. "Thanks, Honey-senpai."

He considered saying goodnight to the others, but they seemed to be having fun so he slipped out unnoticed. All the madness of the last few weeks already felt like the dim and distant past, or a dream. He knew something inside him had changed from the experiences. He had learnt to be a little irresponsible, and that it didn't suit him. He had seen first hand what happened if you tried to carry too many burdens on your own, he had learnt to trust others to look after themselves sometimes. Seeing Hikaru acting normally with Haruhi showed his brother was stronger than he thought. All this time, Kaoru had put off living his own life, justifying it by saying Hikaru needed him. Now he saw it was more he needed Hikaru to need him.

Not anymore, Kaoru swore as he lay down to sleep. He had learnt a lot of things the last few weeks, even if he had only learnt it through mistakes. He probably had a few more heartbreaks coming up in the future, but he would get through them.

He closed his eyes. Tomorrow, when he woke up, it would be to a brand new start.

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Ellie had begun her new start early. Soon after six that morning, she was up and packing Kaoru's clothes back into the suitcases he had brought with him. Occasionally as she folded them carefully, as he would tell her too, she could smell his deodorant or aftershave or whatever it was that made him smell the way he did. But she was very good and didn't breathe too deeply. This was the first step. Her parents stuff was next.

It was a positive experience, she decided. She'd done some things she'd never done before. She'd unloaded a lot of emotion, said some things she hadn't before, even got angry. She supposed it was standing up for herself. Maybe if she got better at doing that, she could move forward, face her feelings, stop running... Something had changed in her, or begun to. She still didn't know what was going to happen in the future, but if she could just sell the house along with the company, maybe it would be okay. If they didn't prosecute her for fraud. But hopefully, she was still a minor and she'd paid all her parents taxes; even given back the child benefits. Whatever happened, she would get through it, and get through it honestly, with her real emotions. She still had a long way to go, but she was learning.

Her phone rang, startling her. She knew exactly who it would be.

"Hello?" She said, smiling.

"Hi." Greg could hear she was more cheerful. "Didn't I tell you? A good night's sleep can make the world of difference."

"I think I've woken up."

"Sounds interesting."

"You're right. I'm going to stop running." She paused, then continued awkwardly. "...I have a long way to go, but... there's so much to tell you."

"One step at a time, Grace- that is, Ellie."

"...Actually, I might start going by 'Grace'."

"Wow. Sounds like you're starting to grow up."

"I think I am. Maybe sometime soon I'll be a woman, and I'll be ready for you."

He paused for a long time. "...is that a promise?"

"No." She laughed. He laughed too.

"Do I at least get to see you again?"

"Yes." She said, definitely. "...I was thinking about shutting up the cottage and moving into Birmingham."

"Well, this is out of nowhere. Don't rush things."

"I'm not rushing. I'm just finally moving."

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"I, Grace Eleanor Grahams..."

"I, Grace Eleanor Grahams..."

"Take you, Gregory Martin Matthews, to be my lawful wedded husband."

"Take you, Gregory Martin Matthews, to be my lawful wedded husband."

"To have and to hold from this day forward..."

At the front of the Church, Ellie looked beautiful. She had managed to lose a little more weight, and had gone through a late growth spurt. The dress she wore was one of her mother's last designs for a bridal range, dug out of storage, with a few modern touches Kaoru had added on himself. It had almost killed him, there were times when all he wanted to do was tear that dress up. But he couldn't ruin this day for her. Not for her. Seven years ago they had parted as friends, and every day for seven years he had thought about her and about kissing her, and had no regrets. It could never have worked for them. They had learnt from one another, and when she had debuted as a designer in her own right aged nineteen, he had been happy to see her. They had become close friends, but that was all. That was all they were ever supposed to be.

And it had brought him back to where he was supposed to be too. Victoria, standing in the maid of honour's place, was as beautiful as ever. She'd had just enough surgery, so no-one could tell, so she was gorgeous and it still looked effortless. Whenever they ran out of conversation he would just look at that shapely body and remember.

After the ceremony was the reception. Ellie and Greg looked young and carefree and beautiful and in love. Kaoru wondered if he and Victoria looked like that. He hoped so. He knew what she was like, knew without his money she wouldn't find him half as attractive, but he even loved her shallowness. Ellie's generosity had taught him that, and he stayed till the end of the reception, until only he and his girlfriend and the new bride and groom were left behind.

"Congratulations." He said to Greg. "This girl taught me everything I knew. Well done, Ellie. Good luck." He kissed her cheek.

"Watch out now." Greg joked. "Don't go too far."

"I did once." Kaoru said without thinking. "In fact, I think I was her first kiss."

Ellie's smile slipped somewhat.

"...you never told me about that." Greg snapped at her. "I thought you said nothing happened!"

"Greg! Nothing did! Greg!" Her protests fell on deaf ears. Greg walked away. Ellie began to cry.

"Thanks a lot, Kaoru! You ruined my life!" She stormed off.

"Ellie, wait-!"

"When did you kiss her?" Victoria demanded.

"Well... when..."

"When you were with me? You jerk!" She said, slapping him hard and storming off. Kaoru stood there, watching the two girls he had known storming off in opposite directions. He needed to go after them both and make it right, but he couldn't move, he was frozen with indecision, and then he realised his legs were turning to stone- it was the weight of his sin, creeping up on him. He couldn't follow. He had to shout after them, shout and make her understand, tell her-

"Kaoru? Kaoru!"

Kaoru sat bolt upright. He was in his bed, at home. He was still only sixteen, his first night back. Hikaru was looking at him in bemusement.

"Were you having a nightmare?"

"Mm, kind of... no, not really..." Kaoru said vaguely, running his hands through his dishevelled hair.

"...you were yelling. I could hear you down the hall." Hikaru persevered. "...you were calling for her."

"Victoria?" Kaoru asked, hopefully.

"Guess again." Hikaru snorted.

Kaoru didn't say anything at first, not until he had flopped back onto the pillows and covered his eyes wearily.

"...well, what the heck do I do now?"

"Beats me." Hikaru shrugged.

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A package arrived that morning. Ellie was about to open it, wondering what on earth it could be, when she realised it was Kaoru's name on the invoice. The box was from the fancy clothes shop in London where she had been measured. Kaoru must have ordered a suit. She considered opening it and packing the suit into one of his other cases, but then decided to just leave it. It wasn't her place to open his mail. She left it in the hall with the rest of his things, waiting for the courier to come and take them to the airport.

Victoria, too, received a parcel that morning. She was as baffled by it as her parents were- It looked like a dress box. The only explanation she could think of was that another agency or designer had seen her modelling work and wanted to use her, sending a gift to tempt her. And she might just be tempted, _Grace Grahams _had given her steady work for years but the pond was getting smaller and smaller while she, the fish, was getting larger. Inside the parcel was a beautiful blue evening dress, even for her it was exquisite and a rare treat. Somewhat speechless, she checked the card, and smiled. This could only mean one thing.

_Dear Vicky,_

_Sorry for disappearing. I think this would look great on you, I can't wait to see it. _

_Love Kaoru_

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A/N: I always wanted to write a sappy wedding scene, and I kind of got to do it in _Reason to Be, _but that was such a skewed story it didn't cut it. Of course, it wasn't real here either, but I hope I had at least someone going for a second. XD Probably not. I said a while back that in my brain this story was divided into three unofficial parts, and this concludes part two. Everyone is starting to move forward. :)

And now time for some shameless self-promotion that you are more than welcome to ignore. My dear friend Blackthorn14 brought me onboard a webcomic project around a month ago; with her super-cute art and my scripting. (If it sounds like a fifty-fifty split, it isn't. XD The art takes far longer, and I feel bad for leaving the bulk of the work to her, so now I have to plug it...) I think the first page is going to be up on Monday, so if you like the sound of a traditional magical-girl story where one girl gets to fight off demons with only an umbrella mixed with my penchant for the overdramatic, please come check it out. :D It has a head prefect and a basement-dwelling, sunglass-wearing, non-attending student in it. Now you know you want to. XD You can either go to 'Smackjeeves' and search KasaKeira or use the following link:

.com/

I know it's very basic with nothing on it right now, but we only just got the account. Please bear with us. :)

Thanks for reading, I'll update again soon!


	13. Tissue paper

A/N: I feel as if I haven't updated for ages, but it hasn't really been much longer than usual... blame writer's block and working on the webcom. XD Unfortunately, I'm starting a new job on Monday (though I'm actually very excited and happy about it!) so just a heads up that it's probably going to get worse! D: At least we're at the beginning of the end...

Disclaimer applies, as always.

Chapter Thirteen- Tissue Paper

"Kaoru, what's this?"

"Huh?" Kaoru asked intelligently. He had been back for a few days, but he was still feeling the weariness of jet lag, feeling constantly tired. Particularly when he had just woken up. He didn't bother looking at his mom as he foraged for some breakfast.

"This." She said, putting a large but flat white box down in front of him. "Ellie-chan sent it on with the rest of your things. It looks like a delivery."

"...from London...?" Kaoru read the return address, and through the befuddlement of sleep couldn't think what it was. "I don't think I ordered anything to be delivered..."

Then he remembered. The dress he had bought for Ellie, to be delivered to the house later.

If his mom saw it, she would never drop it. Never.

"Oh, wait! It's... it's... a poster!"

"A poster?" His mom frowned. "It looks more like a dress box."

"I know, I asked them to package it well so it wouldn't crease. Glad it did!"

"Well then, let's see it."

"No! It's for Tono, he'll be upset if I unwrap it."

"Really." His mom clearly didn't believe him.

"Really." Kaoru insisted, picking it up. "I'll just take it upstairs now."

"You do that." She seemed amused. At least she wasn't pushing it, though he somehow got the feeling she would be later. He took the box upstairs and put it on his bed. Why had she sent it? Didn't she like it? Or was this just her way of refusing him, well and truly ending their association? Had the kiss upset her after all?

Then he realised the box hadn't been opened. For a moment he felt quite offended- then realised it was addressed to him. Being Ellie, it wouldn't have occurred to her to open it. He felt a little sad. He'd wanted her to have it. He opened it up himself.

There it was, carefully folded, nestled in layers of pale rose coloured tissue paper. He didn't know what to do with it, it wouldn't fit anyone else he knew, and if he sent it back, what would she think? And what if his mom found out? He tore holes in the tissue paper in frustration. He'd take it in and give it to Haruhi, where she would 'keep it for best'- as if it was meant for anything else- and never wear it. Annoyed, he slammed the lid back down and stowed it under his bed. What a waste.

Hadn't he ordered a dress for Victoria, too? He wondered what she thought of it. At first he thought she would have burnt it, probably mad at him for not saying goodbye, then it occurred to him she would never take it out on clothes. Especially not ones that would look good on her. He sighed. He didn't resent her, but he should never have gone along with it...

"Kaoru." Hikaru said. "Mom wants us to make sure our uniforms still fit. She swears we've grown over the summer, she won't listen when I say we haven't."

"Right." Kaoru agreed, but feeling a stab of surprise. He still hadn't adjusted to being back in Japan; the idea of returning to school tomorrow felt entirely foreign. He supposed it was because he hadn't spent the summer as he normally would and so felt as if he hadn't had one. He wondered then how Ellie was getting on. The English school system was different to Japan's. For one thing, she would be starting a new school year now whereas he wouldn't until April. For another, compulsory education finished at sixteen, when she would have finished school. She had been planning on going on to a sixth form college to get the A-Levels necessary for university, but she had also mentioned with the company going down she might go straight into work. He supposed she would have to now. He hoped she was alright...

"Kaoru?" Hikaru said, with the tone of annoyance that suggested this wasn't the first time he had called. "Stop spacing out and come on already."

"Right, sorry." Kaoru said, going to the wardrobe and taking his school blazer out for the first time in months. They changed silently, backs to one another.

"You done?"

"Yeah."

They turned and examined the uniforms.

"It's fine." Kaoru said.

"I don't know." Hikaru replied, adjusting his cuffs. "There's not much in it, but these sleeves are really going to annoy me."

"What's wrong with them?" Kaoru asked, looking at his sleeves, which finished exactly with his wrist. Then he had a thought, and looked at Hikaru's. He was right when he said there wasn't much in it, but there was definitely some wrist showing.

"Maybe you're taller than me." Kaoru said, more lightly than he felt.

"What? No I'm not. I've never been taller than you."

"Hmm..." Kaoru moved closer and tried to measure with his hand. "No, you're definitely taller. Only by like a centimetre, but..."

"I'm not, okay?" Hikaru snapped, moving away. "It's just how you're doing it, Kaoru.

"...Alright." Kaoru agreed, glad that he at least wasn't the only one unhappy at this physical sign that their closeness might be growing apart. Still, Hikaru had undeniably gotten taller- and he had been in bed for weeks. How much taller would he get now he was well?

Sooner or later everyone was going to be able to tell them apart. That was an interesting thought. He couldn't work out how he felt about it either way, but it was interesting.

They didn't mention it again, and when they went to present themselves to their mother, she didn't mention it either, for once allowing one of her sons to go around in a blazer that was slightly too small.

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Ellie proceeded carefully up the ladder to the attic, clutching onto it with one hand and onto a bulky cardboard box with the other. It really was a pain, trying to do this on her own. She could do with bigger boxes, but if she did she would probably fall down. Luckily, the ceilings of the cottage were reasonably low and after just a few rungs she was close enough to push the box up through the hatch and follow it. Picking the box up again, she moved it over by the rest.

She was putting everything up here for now. It was incredibly difficult, packing her parents away like this, but every shirt she folded and every ornament she wrapped in tissue paper felt like a step in the right direction. She was leaving a lot out, photographs and so on that had decorated the house, things she used too. Everything else she was wrapping up and bringing up to the attic. She needed to sort it all out properly, decide what to keep and what to get rid of, but she wasn't ready to handle that yet. She hadn't cried nearly as much as she thought she would at this task, so she didn't want to ruin things now. Besides, she might need to sell a lot of it to pay the fine she would undoubtedly incur when she told the authorities she'd hidden their deaths...

No use worrying about that now. Still, she was tired, and the stillness of the attic was a good place to think. She sat down on an empty box and thought about the future. She had a place at the local college that she was due to start at on Monday, but she wasn't sure if that was really an option now. She didn't know whether she would be allowed to continue living here on her own, if she'd be able to afford to... The idea of selling the cottage wrenched at her, but she might not have a choice. Besides, her grades were alright- she was a hard worker- but she didn't feel desperate to continue in academia. The problem was, she didn't know what she wanted to do with her life to know if she'd need a university degree to do it.

She could move to Birmingham, of course. Greg had mentioned that there was a spare room in the house he rented with friends. And with the Bullring, surely she could find shop work somewhere, at least until she worked out what she wanted to do. Maybe she'd call him later. But there was more packing to do first. Her mother had owned a lot of clothes. Then there was still paperwork she needed to sort through...

She was about to climb back down when she saw something white and furry and immediately familiar. She ran over to it, to find a small dog on wheels, a handle attached to the back. It was a toy she had as a child, to help her learn to walk or to roll around on. The fur was bobbled and going stiff and hard now, with several suspicious stains, but it still felt like she had last seen it yesterday. She wanted to sit on it for old time's sake, but fearing it would collapse, patted it on the head instead. Behind it were boxes, full of old toys and books and clothes, that she couldn't resist sifting through, losing herself in the memories. Then she found a stack of old notebooks, and opened one at random, near the back.

_18__th__ November_

_ Bored. _

_19__th__ November _

_ Still bored._

_20__th__ November_

_ Bored. If they want the abortion rate to go down, they should find more for heavily pregnant women to do. Still, waiting will be worth it- only six weeks to go! I want him/her to be born midnight New Years' eve, but their father won't let me force him/her. Must think of baby names or 'him/her' will stick. Don't want to call her 'Grace' yet, in case she's a he or everyone thinks I'm talking to my myself. Stupid traditions._

_21__st__ November_

_ Baby is a born designer (or will be, when he/she is born!)_. _Inspired with new range of baby clothes. Can't reach table due to pregnancy bulge, using bulge instead. Designs would be better if baby would stop kicking!_

_22__nd__ November _

_ New born bonnets? _

_23__rd__ November_

_ Sketches almost done today_

_24__th__ November_

_ Extending range- matching booties. New baby colours- blue pink out green yellow purple __PASTELS_

_25th November _

_ Designs- teddies? Trains? Bunnies- cliché! Cliché sells? Foxes?_

_ Anything with a hat_

_26__th__ November _

_ Mom's birthday, took flowers to grave. Wish she had been able to hold grandchildren. Will call girl 'Grace Eleanor' like her if daddy agrees. _

_ Clematis in cemetery- use colour combos?_

_27__th__ November_

_ He wants to call a boy Stuart. I said no. Now saying Steve. Eugh. _

_28__th__ November_

_ Patrick? _

_29__th__ November_

_ Pierce- would get all the girls! Until he turned 13_

_30__th__ November _

_ Eric for a boy. (I wanted to spell it Erik, but apparently that's too 'Phantom'.)_

_Baby kicking lots today._

_1__st__ December_

_ Baby kicking too much to work. Think it wants to come out, but went to nurse and got sent home._

_3__rd__ December_

_ Baby did want to come out! Had a daughter 11:58PM 1__st__ December. Not completely healthy but 4 weeks prem. so normal. So cute. She cries when she's put down. We are already calling her Ellie because it suits her. Exhausted but happy._

_25__th__ December_

_ Didn't go to in-laws because of baby. Didn't have time to get many presents as we didn't expect her to be here but she was only interested in the fairy lights anyway. Looks shocked every time they come on. It's adorable._

_31__st__ December_

_ Ellie couldn't slept c. Fireworks. Settled her down, got her first smile! Cried for an hour!_

_18__th__ January _

_ Went into office today. Maternity leave seemed so long! _

_14__th__ February_

_ First valentines' day with baby. Crying interrupted usual VD activity! Will leave with inlaws next year for sure! _

_19__th__ March_

_ One line a month seems hardly worthwhile. Must catch up when there's time, but snowed under with preparing summer designs. SUMMER FLOWERS theme_

_21__st__ March _

_ Jake's colours- red, orange, yellow- vibrant_

_ Mel's colours- white, pale yellow, beige- sand, light_

_DECIDE WHICH SCHEME FOR NEXT WEEK! _

_26__th__ March_

_ Decided on both. _

_5__th__ June_

_ Found this under pile of blankets in nursery. Must catch up at the weekend!_

Obviously she never did, though, because it ended abruptly there. She had never kept a diary again, getting out of the habit around this time and never picking it back up. Her mother had kept a diary for most of her life, Ellie knew, because most Christmas Eves, after a few glasses, her mom would stagger up and fetch one down, reading out the funniest passages of a twelve and thirteen year old's daily dramas. She never read from the later ones, claiming they usually ended up as little more than jotter pads for her ideas. Looking at this one, Ellie could see what she meant. Still, even though short, sharp phrases made her feel closer to her mother than she had been since she had died. This was how she remembered her mother- always running around busily doing something, living for work and family at once. The two just couldn't be separated for her. Wherever she was, designing had been as natural to breathing to her. Whatever they did and wherever they went as a family would probably give her enough inspiration to have her sketching on the back of napkins or leaflets, and sometimes she would be working on a floral print or sunset colours and suddenly have the irrepressible urge to go hiking or to the botanical gardens. Ellie wanted to live like that too, with passion and love for her life so vast that she could tackle the problems head on. But she wasn't a natural designer like her mother, for her it was a conscious effort to come out with anything, and even when she had the designs had been rejected. She just had to find her own niche, what she really wanted to do, where she wanted to be.

The problem was, she didn't have anything she was that passionate about. She liked making people happy when it was in her power to do so, but what did that come to? She'd like to get married and have children but that wasn't something she could just make happen. She liked singing along badly to _The Phantom of the Opera _and cooking for Kaoru. Neither of those were exactly career goals. Especially as she wouldn't see Kaoru again.

She didn't let herself dwell on that, instead collecting up the diaries, deciding to read them later, when it was quiet, and finish grieving. After that, maybe someone would borrow them to write a biography. Mom would have liked that, and if this story got to the papers, there might be some interest. Before any of that, however, there was more packing up to do. If she let herself stop, there was no telling when she would be able to force herself to start again.

She was slipping back into old habits, she knew, dealing with this as she dealt with everything- by not thinking about it. Kaoru would shout at her. So too would Greg. And on the subject of not thinking, she needed to think less about the former and more about the latter if she really was going to move forward.

It was time to decide what it was she really wanted.

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"Senpai, let go!"

"But I'm happy to see you, Haruhi! Aren't you happy to see me?"

"Not really."

"Huh?"

"Tamaki, please get out of the corner."

_Business as usual, _Kaoru thought wryly as he watched Kyouya pointedly ignore Tamaki's protestations that Haruhi was rebelling. It was really as if the summer had never happened. It was the first day back after summer break, and though the clubs were not yet officially in session, they had met up for a planning meeting. Not that they had got much planning done yet, bar Honey dictating an extensive list to Mori about what they should restock the sweet cupboard with. Hikaru, unusually, was sitting back and just watching quietly, not getting involved. Kaoru followed his lead, scratching at the back of his neck worriedly. Something was bothering Hikaru- or was he just trying not to get between Haruhi and Tamaki? Maybe. But someone really should.

"I'm just greeting you after our long summer apart!"

"It wasn't apart! You came over and bugged me all the time!"

"But not _every day_!"

"Yeah, but it was for whole days at a time. In fact, in terms of hours, you probably saw ten times more of me than if we had been at school."

"..."

"...Senpai?"

"You're right!" Tamaki was aghast. "But that means... now we're back... daddy will hardly see you!" He hugged her again.

"Good!"

If Tamaki had just pulled his usual stunt of retreating to the emo corner at this point, Haruhi would probably have stubbornly ignored him. Instead, he slowly dropped his arms and let go.

"...sorry, Haruhi... I didn't realise I was a nuisance..."

"...you're only a nuisance when you hug me or when you keep interrupting me when I'm working." Haruhi's kind heart won over her stubbornness- and presumably, better judgement. "If you want to come over, just call to make sure I'm not busy first."

"But if you're not, I can come over?"

"...sometimes, I guess."

"Yay! Thank you, Haruhi!" He was clearly spiralling off into some sort of inner mind theatre at this point. Haruhi obviously noticed to, because she added:

"But it's term time right now, so I'll have homework."

"Oh." Tamaki deflated. "Then... I really will barely see you... even at club, we have customers."

"Well, maybe we can go out sometimes at the weekend."

"Really?"

"Sometimes." She emphasised.

"Why, Haruhi." Kyouya seemed amused, though he didn't look up from the laptop. "Are you asking Tamaki out on a date?"

"Ehhhh?" Tamaki screeched. "A date? Is it Haruhi?"

"No!" Haruhi said, annoyed. "I meant all of us!"

"If you want to go on a date," Tamaki said in his best host voice, cupping her chin. "You have only to ask..."

"Senpai..." Haruhi growled.

They were interrupted by the sound of the door slamming shut. Kaoru looked up with a start and noticed Hikaru had gone without him noticing. "Hikaru!" He said, following after.

"...Now look what you did." Haruhi snapped, running after them too. Tamaki moved as if to go too, then stopped and sighed.

"When did the kids get so troublesome, Kaa-san?"

"Hikaru and Kaoru were separated for the whole summer and seem to be finding it hard to get back in synch again. Hikaru left without Kaoru noticing and seems to have outgrown his brother. They had friends and experiences that they didn't share for the first time. I guess you could call this growing pains." Kyouya analysed.

"If that's all it is, then I guess we can't interfere." Tamaki pouted. "But Haruhi's caught up in it too, and sooner or later we could all be involved. Kyouya... if everyone is starting to change, it could be the end of the Host Club as we know it!"

"Not all change is bad, Tamaki." Kyouya answered. "Isn't that why you chose the people you did to be in this club?"

"Kyouya..."

"Not all change is bad." He repeated, firmly closing the lid of his laptop. "Ask Haruhi out."

"I..."

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As the sun was setting on Japan, she completed the long trek up the driveway. This had to be Kaoru's house- he had given her the address weeks ago- but it was huge, a mansion. Still, the journey was nothing compared to the flight from England. She smiled, knowing it was now affirmed that she had made the right decision. This, then, was what she wanted.

There was a fountain, the water droplets turning gold in the dimming sunlight. She stooped over it to check her reflection. She fluffed her hair a little, batted her eyes to check the lashes, pulled her dress down a little. He had certainly chosen one that suited her. Knowing she looked as good as she ever had in her life gave her confidence, and she mounted the steps, ringing the bell and waiting.

"Yes?" A butler asked, opening the door.

"Hi." She smiled her best, most dazzling smile, and repeated the explanation she'd used to get through the gate. "I'm here to see Kaoru. I came all the way from England."

"I see. And is he expecting you?"

"No, it's a surprise."

"I'm afraid I can't let people in unless the family is expecting or knows them."

"But he does know me! I'm his girlfriend!"

"I'm sorry, miss. If you leave a contact number, I will try to arrange an appointment."

"I don't _need _an appointment! I'm his girlfriend, he _invited _me here, and no penguin-suited bell boy is going to stop me! Let me-" She drew up short as she saw him coming downstairs, looking at her in puzzlement. He was still wearing his school uniform, she noticed, and he wore it well. She never could resist a man in a suit. "Kaoru!" She shouted excitedly, shoving past the butler and throwing her arms around him, kissing him enthusiastically. She could feel his surprise in the way he didn't seem to know whether to respond or not. She moved closer, stretching up to deepen the kiss and give him the answer, but he pulled away first.

"...Victoria?" He said, slowly, looking at her up and down. She was wearing the dress he had bought for her and she could tell he appreciated it. She gave a little twirl.

"Surprise!" She said delightedly, posing elegantly. "I just _had _to come and show you. Do you like it...?" She caressed his cheek.

"Sure." He said, catching her hand and clamping it in his own. "Get upstairs."

"Kaoru!" She laughed in mock indignation. "Don't be vulgar!"

"Who's being vulgar?" He returned, still holding her hand as he dragged her upstairs and down a hallway.

"Kaoru!" She protested, suddenly alarmed. He was being quite rough. "I... I don't want to do this now! It's too soon! Not like this!"

"Shut up and get in." He answered, pulling open one of the doors and shoving her inside. She stumbled forward, stopping herself from falling by grabbing it. Kaoru was sitting on it and looked at her in surprise.

"Vicky?"

"Kaoru?" She yelped. "But... you..." She looked between them. Kaoru at the door, Kaoru on the sofa...

"Present for you." Said the Kaoru at the door, which she suddenly realised must be Hikaru. He sounded annoyed. "She's all warmed up, so enjoy." With that, he left.

"...Vicky? What are you doing here?"

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The queues had seemed never-ending that day, with people coming in to report all sorts of rubbish, everything from biscuits being stolen at a rail station to help finding a pair of glasses that had been lost in a nearby field. This was not real police work. As such, the officer on duty at the desk hadn't paid Ellie much heed at first.

"Can I help you?"

"Probably. My parents died."

"I'm sorry to hear that, but you don't need us. You need the obituary service."

"I'm sorry, but I think I probably need to speak to you." Ellie persevered. "I'm sure I probably broke a law somewhere..."

"Why? Did you kill them?" The officer dead-panned.

"It's just that they died two years ago. I've been covering it up since."

"...what?"

"I'm sorry! I'm sure it's fraud, but I just didn't want to end up in care and I paid all the taxes they would have had to and I even opted out of getting child benefit for myself so-"

"Calm down." The officer lifted a hand to stem the flow. "Is all this true?"

"Yes..."

"And you think you've probably broken the law?"

"Yes."

"Then why are you here? If all criminals just turned themselves in most of the police could just quit their jobs."

"Because I'm trying to move on." Ellie answered. "Which means I have to deal with this first."

The officer was bewildered. He didn't know what he should do with her. Yes, she had knowingly covered up a death, which was technically fraud, but she was just a kid...

"I think you'd better come with me." He said, leading her down to one of the interview rooms where someone else could figure it out.

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A/N: Oh me oh my, is Victoria causing trouble again? Tut tut. Tune in next time for more on that ;) It was nice getting to write a little bit of Tamaki and Kyouya and the others in this chapter; expect more of that, too. :) Thanks for reading!


	14. Knee Highs

A/N: A short chapter this time, but I really wanted to get something up for you this week. :) The story is almost over...

Disclaimer as always.

Chapter Fourteen- Knee-highs

"Vicky?" Kaoru said, trying not to let his mouth hang open. "What are you doing here?"

"Are you surprised?" She asked, regaining her composure and giving him a little twirl. "You wanted to see how the dress looked, right?"

"The dress...?" He repeated, dumbly.

"...Kaoru?" She was slightly hurt now. "Aren't you happy to see me?"

"Yes, yes!" He reassured her, not wanting to make her unhappy when she had come all the way here. "I'm just... surprised. Um, you met Hikaru?"

"Yeah, just now. You really do look alike..." Was she blushing?

"Maybe I should bring him back here to be properly introduced." He didn't want to be alone with her. He had no idea what to say. Why hadn't he told her about the kiss with Ellie? He couldn't tell her now...

"No, I missed you. Let's have some us time." She whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him. Automatically, he kissed back and felt her relax. Maybe this wasn't so bad. The kiss with Ellie hadn't meant anything, and if he could have something other than a summer romance with Victoria... after all, there had to be a reason he had gotten with her to begin with. A reason he hadn't pushed her away when they had first kissed. She was pretty and fun, what else did he want?

"Vicky... I'm sorry." He muttered, resting his forehead against hers.

"It's okay." She said, moving and nuzzling into his neck. "We're together now."

"And you look great." Kaoru added. "That dress really suits you!"

"You have a good eye." She smiled. "I'd love to try some of your mom's designs. Maybe I could be in your next catalogue."

Kaoru's smile slipped a little. So it was back to that. "Probably." He agreed. "But I should probably tell her you're here first, huh?"

"Maybe." She laughed, taking his hand. "Meeting the parents. It must be serious."

"Yeah. Must be."

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It was pretty much exactly two weeks since Kaoru had left when Ellie's doorbell rang urgently. She put down the masking tape she had been using to seal a box shut and went to answer it, pausing by the hall mirror to adjust her hair. She needn't have bothered. As soon as she opened it, Greg hugged her so hard it was immediately askew again.

"Hi." She said.

"Grace..." He muttered. "You should have told me."

"I did tell you, that's why you came." She answered, finally hugging him back. "...thank you. I'll make us some tea."

While she did, Greg took the chance to have a look around the rest of the house. "Man, Grace..." He said, surveying the boxes arranged in a neat pile in the corner. "You said you were sorting stuff out, I didn't think you were just getting rid of everything."

"I have to." She said, settling down on the settee and handing him a mug of tea. "I don't know how much of a fine I'll have to pay yet, but I bet I'll have to sell it all. I may even have to sell the house."

"I can't believe this." He shook his head. "Why didn't you tell me about your parents? Or about how you were struggling? I could have helped!"

"I wanted you to have your own life." She said. "And... I'd just rejected you. I didn't want to take advantage."

"Going out with me anyway would have been taking advantage." He sighed. "Let's just hope the fine won't be too much. I can't see how it could be, I mean you've been paying a ton of tax when you shouldn't have."

"Yes," She sighed, and began ticking things off on her fingers. "But it's still fraud, my inheritance needs to be taxed, I've been running a company and employing people when I'm underage, using another name, forging signatures..."

"Okay, okay." He stopped her. "Who knew you were such a naughty girl?"

"It was just the only way I could cope with them being gone." She sighed. "I didn't want to admit they weren't coming back...and I didn't want to let them down, I felt like I just had to keep the company going..." She tilted her head back, trying to stop the tears coming out. "But I think they'd finally be proud now."

Greg took her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. He didn't let go. She smiled awkwardly at him and tried to worm her hand out of his. He tightened his grip.

"Grace." He said. "You need to be honest."

"You're right." She nodded. "I could have saved myself a lot of trouble if I'd just let myself deal with it from the start..."

"No, honest with me." He said. "You rejected me before, but can you honestly say nothing has changed since then?"

"No... I guess not."

"Good." He answered, and kissed her. She pulled back immediately.

"...I think you should go now."

"Grace!" He snapped, frustrated. "You're not being fair! You act like you want to be with me, but when I try, you just push me away! For all your posturing, you're still just running away from your feelings!"

"That's not fair." She said. "I'm doing my best, I just don't want to go with you when I'm not sure how I feel..."

"Then work out how you feel!" He demanded.

"It's not that simple!"

"Only because you won't let it be!" He said, frustrated. "Grace, just try!" He kissed her again, more fiercely.

"Stop it!" She moved away.

"Grace, grow up already! You're expecting it to be some kind of fairytale, but this is real life! I've been so patient, Grace, I've tried, but I can't wait much longer! I don't care if you aren't sure yet, no-one is when they start out. That's why you date until you are!" He took her hands gently. "Grace, please. We both know you've always been my girl. We just picked up where we left off. We didn't forget each other. That must mean something."

"...I'm not your girl, I'm my own girl." She answered, pulling her hands away slowly. "...and my name is Ellie."

"I just want an answer."

"I don't have one to give you yet!"

"Then why won't you try?"

"I want to like you, Greg, but if I-"

"If you want to then you do!" He insisted. "Sorry, Gr- Ellie. Sometimes I forget how young you are..."

"This is nothing to do with my being young!"

"Then what is it?"

"It's because I kissed Kaoru-san!"

There was a long pause. "...what?" Greg shook his head. "Don't be ridiculous, Ellie. He's with Victoria. Your best friend. She's living over there with him, for goodness sake!"

"I know, I know!"

"You can't have kissed him. You wouldn't do something like that."

"I wouldn't illegally cover up deaths either." She said, glaring.

He looked at her for a long moment. "You're right, you've changed. I didn't think you were this kind of girl, Grace." He moved for the door.

"Greg... please don't go."

"Why shouldn't I?" He snapped. "You obviously don't want me here. I'm done being lead up the garden path, Ellie."

The door slammed behind him and Ellie was alone.

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Victoria's entrance to the school had been a fiasco from start to end. First there had been convincing her to come. Compulsory education finished at sixteen in England, and persuading her to re-enter high school for another two or three years was a task and a half. Then there was getting her into the uniform. She had argued yellow wasn't her colour, that she hadn't worn knee-high socks since Primary school, and overall that it was designed to make girls look 'cute' rather than 'hot'. Hikaru hadn't helped things.

"You're right." He said. "But that's because Japanese girls aren't sluts."

"What? I am not!"

"Fine, then they aren't gold-diggers either."

"Excuse me, but if you're that cynical it's pretty obvious it's because you've never had a girl yourself. I wonder why that might be."

"Oh, come on. The only thing that interests you about Kaoru is his surname!"

"Funny how I'm not all over you, then!"

"What, like when you first arrived?"

"That was an accident!"

"There was a lot of tongue involved for an accident. I thought I was going to choke."

"Well, I'm still trying to brush my teeth!"

"Trying being the key word."

"At least my hair doesn't look like I've been dragged through a bush backwards!"

And so on. Those two bickered every time they met, which was frequently. She almost spent more time arguing with Hikaru then spending time with Kaoru, which was something of a relief. She was fairly exhausting.

Once she had been at school, there had been the ripples to deal with. There was all the male attention she got, obviously, and from all the girls who were fascinated by her. And then they found out she was dating Kaoru, and living with him, and the whole school was in an uproar. There was a great deal of jealousy. Tamaki had shown his hidden intelligence once again by immediately telling them how to adapt the twincest act into Hikaru being jealous and abandoned and Kaoru torn between his dear brother and the girl he loved. They got even more popular than before, though Kaoru wasn't sure he felt comfortable with it when Victoria was watching. The first time she had seen them do the act she had been disgusted with him and quite angry about it, mollified only when he had taken her out on a date. She was still fun and very pretty, and he enjoyed being around her, but keeping her happy was an unending task.

Then there was the problem of if he really wanted to be with her. He knew he wasn't being fair to her, being with her when he wasn't sure, but he didn't know what else to do. He had taken the trip with Ellie to try and sort his head out, but he had only ended up more confused. If Victoria really was only with her because she could help his career, why wasn't she flirting with the rich boys- many richer than him, many with parents who had great sway over the press- who tried to get her attention on a daily basis? Instead she just politely accepted the compliment and moved on. He had assumed it would all be over when he had left England, but it seemed she had other ideas. Now what was he supposed to do...?

"Kaoru?" Tamaki came into the otherwise deserted club room. Kaoru had slipped away from the lunch table, leaving Victoria and Hikaru to loudly criticise each other's taste in music, and come up here for some quiet. He should have known Tono would hang out here if Kyouya was busy. "Are you okay?"

"Fine."

"Aren't you here with Hikaru and Vicky-chan?"

"They aren't here, so no." Kaoru snapped.

"...Did something bad happen?"

"No..." Kaoru sighed. Tamaki came and sat next to him.

"But something is bothering you."

"...maybe."

"What happened?"

Kaoru wasn't sure if he should tell Tamaki or not, but before he knew what he was doing, the whole story was spilling out of him. Tamaki looked troubled, but was unusually quiet.

"So what do I do?" Kaoru asked.

"I can't tell you that." Tamaki shook his head.

"Please... I'm confused."

"Sorry, Kaoru." He said. "But I think doing what other people wanted is what created this mess to begin with."

"...you mean being with Vicky?"

"I mean all of it. What you need to work out is what you feel about Ellie-chan. Either you can't stop thinking about it because you love her or because you love Vicky-chan and feel guilty. But it's not for me to tell you which."

"Does that mean you know?"

"I think so." Tamaki nodded. "But right now, I'm more worried about Ellie-chan! Isn't she all alone?"

"No." Kaoru said, slightly bitterly. When he had tentatively raised this subject with Victoria soon after her arrival, she had dismissively said 'she's fine, always on the phone to Greg'. "She has another guy looking after her."

"Oh... well, that's good!"

"I guess..."

"You'll work it out." Tamaki encouraged, patting him on the back. "You're just new at this." He stood to leave.

"Oi, Tono, didn't you come here for something?"

"Yes." He smiled. "I saw you leave, I wanted to make sure you were alright."

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"That much?"

Re-reading the figure several times didn't make it any smaller, nor did expressing her surprise to the empty house. Not that she would be able to keep the house much longer, from the looks of things. If she didn't get the money to the Inland Revenue by the end of the month, they would repossess and she would have no say in what they took- and if there was any surplus profit, she wouldn't see it. But how could she get that much in a month? She would be able to auction things from the house, but they wouldn't raise anywhere near enough. A house couldn't be sold in a month, and now Greg hated her, where would she stay?

It would have to be the company, she realised with a sinking heart. It had lost a lot of value and when this story got out it was probably going to lose even more. She had received several good offers. She needed to accept one, fast, before she regretted it. She went to the phone and dialled.

As it rung, she tried to tell herself this was a good thing. It was key to her starting again. Her mother would rather it survived than that it was run into the ground staying in the family, and with that weight off her shoulders she could start again. The offer had been generous too, enough to cover the fine and probably pay the food bills for a while until she could get a job. It would be fine...

"WDRT Designs, Mr Turnball's office."

"Hello, this is Grace Grahams." Ellie said. The call was more likely to be patched through if she used her first name, she found. "May I speak with Mr Turnball? It's about his offer."

"I'll put you through." They had been expecting the call, evidently.

"Hello?" The man's voice came a moment later. "How can I help you, Miss Grahams?"

"It's about your offer for the company, Mr Turnball." She said. "Assuming your terms are still the same, I'd be glad to accept."

"Ah... I have to tell you about that, Miss Grahams." He said, not sounding like he minded much. "Times are hard. The terms have changed."

"Excuse me?" Her heart was in her mouth. "...changed how?"

"Well, we're dropping the amount by a million or two."

"What?"

"It's the best we can do."

"It wasn't last week."

"We can't offer the guarantee of jobs to your employees either."

"What? But before..."

"With respect, Miss Grahams, I've heard about what's been going on and it does sufficiently devalue the company. Particularly as I know you're desperate to sell now."

"That's unfair..."

"Its business, Miss Grahams. But I'll give you time to think it over. Just bear in mind the value of that little company of your parents will drop everyday. Good day." He hung up.

Ellie put the phone down. She knew she needed to make calls to other people, see what they would give her. But the offer from WDRT had been far more generous than the others to begin with, so how would it help?

What was she supposed to do? Because of her, all those people would lose their jobs. And what was she going to do? Even if she sold the company and everything in the house, there wouldn't be any money left.

What was she going to do...?

She knew crying wouldn't help. But she couldn't help it.

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	15. Fountain

A/N: I really didn't think I'd get a chapter done this weekend. Normally I work on webcomic scripts during the week and this at the weekend, but this Friday and Saturday I didn't even open the file. Then today, inspiration struck, I felt like writing, and this came out. And I'm pleased with it, which is the first chapter I've liked for a while :O Hope you enjoy it too! :)

Disclaimer applies.

Chapter Fifteen- Fountain

In the extensive grounds of Ouran High School, there were many fountains. Western style, Japanese style, copies of monuments from around the world, the beauty and soothing sound of the falling water relaxed many students. An awful lot of love confessions took place there, too. Which was why, when Tamaki asked Haruhi to go there with him after the Host club, there were various levels of reaction amongst the Hosts.

Kyouya, who had seen this coming for a while, but was surprised Tamaki had realised it, enough that his hands froze over his keyboard.

Honey was so shocked, he shouted 'ehhhhh?' and almost dropped his cake fork. Almost, naturally. Even Mori turned to look quickly at Tamaki.

Kaoru stared for a minute, then turned to look how Hikaru was taking it. He was staring at Tamaki in horror, his latest argument with Victoria forgotten, his hands balling into fists. Kaoru moved a little closer, hoping he would stop short of punching Tamaki. Even Victoria ceased abruptly her torrent of abuse, wondering what the problem was.

And Haruhi, who had never heard anything about the fountains, agreed and hoped it wouldn't take too long; concentrating more on what she needed to buy for dinner that night.

"You guys can finish packing up here, right?" Tamaki asked sheepishly, then grabbed Haruhi's arm and pulled her out.

Silence reigned in the third music room.

"Well," Kyouya said, finally, sounding amused. "It looks like our 'king' is finally growing up."

"You're not just going to let him, right?" Hikaru demanded, his patience snapping. "What good will it do? Even if he's accepted his feelings Haruhi hasn't yet! It'll just ruin everything for the rest of us when the club falls apart!"

"Hikaru..." Kaoru started.

"Oh, get over yourself." Victoria put in. "Let me guess, Haruhi rejected you? Who cares? She didn't like you, big deal. You need to be with someone who appreciates you and she needs to be with someone she appreciates. Don't act like no-one else can have her, you big jerk!"

"Didn't you hear what I just said?" Hikaru demanded. "I said she wasn't ready for him yet! Not that she couldn't ever be with him if that's what she wanted!"

"You're not saying it because you know it's wrong! I bet you still _feel _it though! You're pathetic, if you can't let go of someone you liked once it's over!"

"Unlike you, I'm not a total-"

"Excuse me." Kyouya's dangerously cool tone cut through the heated argument. "Victoria-chan. Who told you Haruhi was a girl?" This with a pleasant smile at Kaoru that suggested he was dead.

"Huh? No-one told me. Is it meant to be a secret?"

"I beg your pardon? Why did you think she wore the boys' uniform?"

"I figured it was just her preference." Victoria shrugged. "She's pretty obviously a girl."

Further shock. Kyouya, at least, kept calm.

"Interesting. Tell me, am I correct in thinking that in England, the boys' and girls' uniforms are the same?"

"Yeah. I mean, you could wear a skirt if you liked, but..."

"So you're used to seeing girls in masculine uniforms. I suppose that's why you could tell."

"Maybe, but there was more the fact that she looks like a girl, sounds like a girl, and acts like a girl. Plus it's pretty obvious when you watch you guys with her."

"Excuse me?"

"Tamaki... Hikaru... even you, Kyouya- you all make mooney-eyes at her."

"What?" Even Kyouya was taken aback, though it was Hikaru that shouted. "Kyouya-senpai... you like Haruhi?"

"Don't be absurd." Kyouya snorted. "Still, what is interesting is that you assumed Haruhi was a girl rather than that we were gay, as most of our fans unfortunately would."

"Oh, well, that's because Hikaru doesn't kiss like a gay guy." Victoria said, matter-of-factly.

"Wait, you've kissed gay guys?" Hikaru asked.

"You've kissed Hikaru?" Kaoru demanded.

"Don't worry." Victoria kissed his cheek, briefly. "I thought he was you at the time."

"Yeah, but-!"

"Let's save this for later." Kyouya said decisively. "If Tamaki is confessing his feelings, you don't want to miss it, do you?"

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"It's still so warm..." Haruhi commented, running her fingers under the fountain. "At least the water stays cool."

"Yeah..." Tamaki said, sitting down on the stone rim. He seemed awkward. "Haruhi... I want to ask you something, I couldn't in front of the others."

"Alright..." Haruhi sat down next to him. "Is something wrong?"

With those entreating eyes staring at him, it was a wonder Tamaki could concentrate on what he was saying. "No... it's just, well, I've been thinking about this for a while, but..."

Behind a nearby hedge, peering through gaps in the branches, the hosts braced themselves. Hikaru snapped a twig in his fingers, but the two at the fountain were too engrossed to notice.

"What is it?" Haruhi pressed.

"I want you to show me how to make a cake!"

This had not been what the hosts behind the hedge had been expecting.

"Huh? Why?" Haruhi asked.

"Well... Kyouya's birthday is coming up and his family never get him a cake, and you always say home made things are better, so..."

"His birthday isn't until November, right?"

"But I want to be perfect at it by then!"

"These two are useless." Kyouya scowled. "I should have expected something like this..." Losing interest, he sighed and began to leave.

"I hope he makes a chocolate cake!" Honey added, moving off too, Mori beside him.

"Let's go." Kaoru said to Victoria and Hikaru, who was crouching low to the ground for some reason. "What are you doing?"

"Shut up and let's go." Hikaru said, straightening up. At the same time, Haruhi stood up and stumbled on the piece of twig that had been cleverly rolled under her foot.

"Ah, Haruhi!" Tamaki said, trying to grab her as Haruhi struggled to regain her balance. As usual, he succeeded only in making it worse, pitching them both into the fountain. Kaoru tried to suppress a laugh. Hikaru, on the other hand, didn't look amused at all.

"Hikaru...?"

Haruhi was on her back in the shallow fountain, Tamaki sprawled above her, having put his arms out to stop himself just in time, but seeming too surprised to move.

"Ah, now I'm soaked..." Haruhi grumbled, pushing herself up on her elbows. She then stopped suddenly, obviously having just realised how close her face was to Tamaki's.

"Haruhi..." He breathed. She didn't answer as they stared at one another.

"...but Hikaru likes her!" Victoria, behind the hedge, was enraged. "This can't happen!"

"Vicky, wait!" Kaoru tried, but Victoria had already run over to the fountain.

"What are you two doing in there?" She asked, innocently. "Come on, Tamaki, everyone is waiting for you to lock up the third music room."

"Um... okay." Tamaki said, startled. Her work done, Victoria skipped away.

"Um... senpai? Could you move?" Haruhi asked.

"Ahhh! Sorry, Haruhi, sorry!" Tamaki, now blushing furiously, thrust himself away as if she were red hot, so fast he overbalanced again and ended up falling on his backside under one of the tumbling plumes of water. Haruhi looked at him, and burst out laughing.

"You look ridiculous, senpai." She said, getting up. "Oh, don't pout, you do. Anyway, aren't you the one who told me 'handsome men can't be hurt by water'?"

Tamaki immediately perked up. "Right! Even a simple scene can be more effective if-" Still sitting under the fountain, he broke off to cough and splutter up the water he'd swallowed while talking.

Shaking her head, Haruhi reached out her hand and hauled him up, letting go as soon as he was on his feet. "You're an idiot, senpai." She said, climbing out of the fountain. "But you're cute." She added, over her shoulder.

Tamaki stumbled in surprise, almost falling back into the fountain as he blushed. Then he stepped down elegantly beside her, regaining his composure. "Now you sound like a host." He smiled. "It must be because you learnt from the best!"

"You're right..." Haruhi said thoughtfully. "I guess I should help with the cake, as a thank-you to Kyouya-senpai."

"What? No! I meant me!"

"Who would learn anything from you?"

"Who gets the most customers?"

"...Hikaru, let's go." Kaoru urged, pushing Hikaru into movement as Haruhi and Tamaki argued cheerfully behind them. Those two were going to have to go at a snail's pace, evidently, but you could tell they were on the final stretch. However oblivious they were, a happy ending couldn't be far away.

Kaoru just hoped there was the same in store for him.

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"I see. Yes. I'll get back to you. Thank you." Ellie sighed and put the phone down, briefly running her hands over her face. She hadn't slept and she hadn't eaten, but she couldn't stop. Not until she had sorted this. It wasn't just about her anymore. She had to pay the fine for covering up her parents' death or face jail time, and that meant she had to sell the company. But the story had gotten out, people had heard what she had done, and they knew that she was desperate to sell. All this time turning down offers, resisting hostile takeovers... it had been for nothing. Even if the company had lost some value recently, she knew the offers were massively undervalue it. None of them were willing to guarantee the staff would be kept on either. How many lives had she ruined trying to do this herself?

But beating herself wasn't going to do any good. Kaoru had said that, hadn't he, when he had told her off for her self-destructive bent. She would get through this, somehow.

She wondered if he had got it back together over Victoria. She hoped so. Hopefully they would make each other happy.

And she... she would make happiness of her own. She couldn't sell the company. Not to people that wouldn't care about keeping it going, to companies that would just absorb the name and the profit and shut it all down, that would put everyone out of work. She would raise the money another way, or she would go to prison. If that happened, of course, the company would be taken from her. But maybe then someone would hear the story, admire her principles, and answer her prayers.

It wasn't much of a hope, but she didn't have much else to hold on to.

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Kaoru scratched his arm moodily. The atmosphere in the room was tense, heavy and oppressive. Silence reigned.

"Why don't you just get mad, if you're going to get mad?" Hikaru said, losing his patience. He folded his arms. "Just say it, Kaoru."

"You two kissed."

"She kissed me."

"I already said, I thought he was you!" Victoria protested. "Anyway, you kissed back, Hikaru!"

"What was I supposed to do when you threw yourself at me?"

"You didn't exactly try to stop me!"

"Hey, I didn't know who you were! If a hot girl started making out with you, would you push her off?"

"Nope."

"Wait, what?"

"Of course I would! Arrgh, you're such an idiot!"

"Would you two stop it?" Kaoru interrupted. "The point is, it happened."

"Yeah, but it didn't mean anything!" Victoria protested. Hikaru nodded.

"Right. The real point is that no-one here is being honest." He turned to Victoria. "You know you weren't invited here, right? Kaoru wasn't expecting you to just invite yourself to come move in with us."

"I was invited! He sent me that beautiful dress! He said he wanted to see me in it!"

"Yeah, and when do you think he sent it?"

"What...?"

"I sent it before I left." Kaoru sighed. "When I was in London. Before I knew I was coming home."

"...so you don't want me here?"

"No! It's not like that!"

"I think it is." Hikaru butted in. "Let me tell you something, Vicky, it isn't your name he keeps saying in his sleep."

"Hikaru!" Why was he doing this? Kaoru couldn't understand it. "Stop it!"

"But it's true! So why not tell her?"

"...Kaoru?"

"I'm just worried about Ellie." Kaoru said reluctantly. "...her parents are dead. They died on the way back from Japan."

"What? That's impossible!"

"...it's true."

"I see... so she really has been running it on her own all this time..."

"Looks that way."

"I guess the company will be sold." Victoria pondered. "Good job I came out here, then..."

"Wow, you're really heartless." Hikaru commented. "Maybe you should marry Kyouya-senpai."

"I'm not! I'm just saying, it would have been worse if we were both stuck!"

"Aren't you worried about your friend?"

"Of course I am, but I don't know what I can do from here..."

"Then go home!"

She folded her arms and glared. "Hikaru-san, I'm starting to think you don't want me here."

"No-one wants you here."

"Kaoru does."

"He does not." Hikaru shrugged. "Look, when did you last do anything that made you seem like a couple? Ever?"

"You're just jealous." Victoria answered, snuggling into Kaoru, who wasn't quite sure what to do.

"Jealous? Of some phoney relationship?"

"It's not phoney! Which you'd know, if you knew how to treat girls!"

"I know how to treat girls! Bet I'd be better on a date than Kaoru!"

"Fine, then prove it!"

"Fine, we'll go out on Saturday!"

"Fine!"

"Wait, what?" Kaoru protested. "Hikaru, did you just ask my girlfriend out?"

"Oh, come on, Kaoru." Hikaru sighed. "She's no more your girlfriend than I am."

With that witty remark, he left. Victoria and Kaoru looked at each other.

"I'm only going to prove him wrong." Victoria said, standing up and flipping her blond hair elegantly into place. "I'd better go e-mail Ellie."

"But..."

"What?"

"Well... you do seem kind of attracted to him."

"Because he looks like you, dummy."

"But you're different with him."

"Because I'm not dating him, duh."

"...okay."

But he wasn't convinced, and they both knew it.

Later, Hikaru asked: "Hey, you're not mad at her for kissing me, right? I think she really did think it was you."

"No." Kaoru answered, climbing into bed. "I kissed Ellie."

"What?"

"...I screwed up."

"Over the kiss or over leaving Grey-chan?" Hikaru was being annoyingly perceptive. Kaoru couldn't answer, so ignored him and pulled the covers over his head.

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"A theme park? This is where you take a girl on a first date?"

"Yeah."

"Don't you think you should have gone for something romantic?" Victoria was unimpressed.

"On a first date? No. Not like you'd be serious yet."

"If you aren't serious, why are you dating her?"

And so on. These two couldn't be in each other's company for more than five minutes without arguing and today they were both determined to prove each other wrong, which was why Kaoru had been reluctant to let them go. In the end, though, some battles are inevitable. Like Hikaru taking her out, determined to prove he knew how to date, and Victoria determined not to have a good time and to show him he didn't.

There was more to it than that, of course. He couldn't fail to notice it- she was showing her true colours now. For Hikaru. And maybe her true self was a little shallow, or not as sweet and nice as she was with him, but... it was real. Kaoru couldn't help but wonder if the attraction he saw between them was really there or if he was just hoping it was so he didn't have to decide for himself.

Either way, Hikaru and Victoria were at the theme park and whether they wanted to or not, having a good time- for the most part. Not wanting to look like a wuss had them both going on the largest rollercoasters. The biggest in the park was a monster, plunging you down fifty feet before going into five loops, each twenty feet tall, then a thirty foot slope, three backwards loops, a twenty foot slope, and then a winding track snaking through the other loops where the top speeds would be reached before climbing the final forty foot peak, plummeting down followed by just enough track to stop the passengers getting whiplash when they reached the end.

"Sure you want to do this?" Victoria said, as they joined the queue. "It's okay to chicken out gracefully."

"Well, maybe for a girl. But I'll leave with you if you want to save face."

"Whatever. Bet you scream like a five year old in pigtails!"

"Good thing no-one will hear me over you!"

They dared each other to sit in the front carriage and they were away. The climb to the top of the first drop was long. When they reached the summit, the train sat for a second, gathering a breath of anticipation.

"Ready?" Hikaru grinned, though he was clutching the bars over his shoulders.

"More ready than you." She answered, and then the world flew up around them. "Oh-!"

It was the longest, loudest, crudest expletive Hikaru had ever heard. Made even more impressive by the fact his breath had been completely snatched away.

"Very lady like." He smirked as he climbed out of the car at the exit, hoping she couldn't see how much his arms and legs were shaking.

"Shut up." She said, stumbling. He helped her out.

"Bet you wouldn't have said that in front of Kaoru."

"No, but he's worth making an effort for." She answered.

"You mean faking it?"

"Everyone fakes it." She answered.

"I don't."

"That's because you're rude." She patted his head. "Oh hey, let's go see the pictures!"

They went over to the kiosk and searched through the on-screen thumbnails until they found themselves.

"Haha, you look pretty terrified, Hikaru-chan..."

"At least I had my eyes open!"

"You look pretty pale, too. Maybe you should sit down."

"Maybe you should!"

"Fine, I fancy eating. Want to join me or is your stomach too weak to take it?"

So, in order to save their pride, they went and ate greasy pizza and tried their best not to be sick.

"Tell me something." Hikaru said, folding his arms so he could avoid eating any more until his stomach settled. "How do you really feel about Kaoru?"

"He's a sweet guy." She said. "He's attractive. He's kind."

"Yeah, but do you love him?"

"That's what I'm dating him to find out." She said, breezily.

"Except you already know, so why did you follow him out here?" Hikaru asked, leaning forward. "I won't let you hurt him."

"I followed him out here because I wanted to be with him."

"So you say, but would you have followed him if he hadn't been a Hitachiin? Or would you have made done with an e-mail? Or would you have left it as a summer romance?"

"It's nothing to do with you, so just butt out!"

"I told you, I don't want Kaoru getting hurt. And this is hurting him."

"I'm doing nothing wrong!"

"No, but you're making him feel guilty!"

"About what?"

"About not wanting to be with you!" Hikaru said, frustrated. "Newsflash, Vicky, he never asked you out, you just threw yourself at him! He thought you were pretty and got confused, while he was falling for Grey-chan!"

"What?" She laughed. "Okay, I think maybe Ellie had a crush on him, but... she's a nice girl, but Kaoru is used to hanging out with _models_. He wouldn't-"

"He kissed her."

"What?"

"He's not a jerk. He's not the kind of guy who would do something like that." Hikaru said simply. "So he must really like her."

"...he must do." She agreed, playing with a pizza crust.

"I was sort of expecting you to go and serve his balls to him on a plate right about now." Hikaru said. "You know, if you really wanted to be with him."

"Maybe you're right." She said, glaring at him. "But you know, there is such a thing as saying too much." She stood up.

"You're going to go confront him?"

"No." She scowled, pulling him up. "You're going to play a penalty game for killing the dream."

"What?"

"You have to ride the merry-go-round!"

"Oh, real scary."

"With all the parents and kiddies and couples on dates watching."

"...what?"

"Fifteen times!"

"What?"

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"Kaoru."

Kaoru had been sitting quietly in one of the lounges, pretending to read his book- a certain novel by Gaston Leroux- but really staring into space, wondering what Hikaru and Vicky and Ellie and Greg were all doing, when his father entered, carrying the Saturday newspaper.

"Hi, dad."

"Look at this." His dad pointed to a little stub article at the bottom of the fashion pages. It was only a few paragraphs, but it stopped Kaoru's blood in his veins.

**-Grace Grahams set for repossession- **

_Popular UK high street brand _Grace Grahams _is set to face repossession by the UK government due to an unfolding drama where the owners had died and their daughter, the sole inheritor, had covered up the deaths. Grace Eleanor Grahams, now aged 16, is rumoured to have been running the company for almost two years. In this time, the company had been becoming gradually less profitable- a trend set to exaggerate due to the current crisis. After facing off several hostile take-over bids, Grahams came clean and now faces a large fine. However, she refuses to accept any offers, claiming they undervalue the company and will not guarantee the jobs of her employees. Although she claims to be willing to go to prison over the issue, the greater question is what will happen to the company now. Most likely, it will be repossessed by the British government and stripped of its profits or be absorbed by a private investor. A sad end to a promising company. See pg 7 for more news on London fashion._

"What?"

"Kaoru, did you know about this?"

"Do I look like I knew?" He snapped, running out of the room. "Mom!"

He had to do something to help. Right now.

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A/N: Things are starting to conclude. The next chapter should be the last, though I'm not sure if I'll separate it into a chapter and an epilogue. Hmm. Thanks for reading, please stick with me till the end! :)


	16. Microphone

A/N: A slightly longer chapter just to wrap everything up. Possibly I should have split it into a chapter and an epilogue, but oh well. It would have been up earlier, but I was watching the football. XD

So, for the last time... standard disclaimer applies.

Chapter Sixteen- Microphone

_-I'll go wherever you will go-_

Sometimes Ellie couldn't sleep at night. Yes, her willingness to face prosecution over the fate of her employees was getting a lot of attention, and some were even demanding the government intervene, but in times like these there was no guarantee that they would. If she was prosecuted and the company repossessed, there was a chance the workforce would be kept on for convenience, but... She turned over.

Then there was Kaoru. Whenever she felt unsure, her thoughts drifted back to him, the fun they had in London. He had come just when she was the most lonely, and now he had left- taking Victoria with him. She'd even driven Greg away. She turned over again.

No, she had to look at this as a new start. She wondered what her life would be like from now on. In a new place, whether it was prison or a new home. A new set of friends. A new path. She sighed deeply into the night air, listening to the rain drumming down on her roof. She couldn't help but smile. New Ellie, new life, same old English weather. There was still some uncertainty ahead, but there was still something she needed to do. The next morning, she got the first train to Birmingham. Soon after, she was back in the Palisades, waiting outside the gadget shop for Greg's shift to end. He hadn't seen her, but she had seen him, watched him work. It would be a shame not to see him again.

"Grace?" He said, surprised, as he left that day.

"...It's Ellie."

"Ha. Hi."

"Hi." She hesitated, then forced herself to spit it out. "I'm sorry."

"Huh?"

"That we parted on such bad terms, or if I lead you on and for leaning on you..." She trailed off. "And just generally mucking you about."

For a moment, he looked so cold she didn't think he was going to forgive her. Then his face softened, and he shrugged. "I mucked myself about. That's just who you are, Ellie."

"Right. So this time it's goodbye."

"What?" He looked worried. "For how long?"

"Forever." She smiled, then suddenly frowned. "No, wait, that's a bit melodramatic. How about 'until next time'? That way if we're meant to meet again, we will."

"Grace..."

"Please." She said. "Otherwise things will just carry on like before."

He sighed deeply, looking at her sideways. "...You're a weird girl." He decided, finally, offering his hand. "Goodbye, Ellie Grahams."

"Goodbye." She replied, shaking it. "Good luck!"

Seeming awkward, she fled for the escalators back to the station. Watching her go down them, Greg couldn't resist calling after her.

"Work out what it is you want, Grace!"

"Will do!" She said, giving a mock salute before turning it into a wave. "Until next time!"

"Bye..."

Ellie waited until she was out of sight to wipe her eyes. That had gone better than she'd thought, and he obviously hadn't heard about the trouble she was in. She wondered if she would see him again. Somehow, she doubted it. She was determined to start over from scratch. She just had to resolve the issues with the company.

Sometimes Ellie couldn't sleep at night, and at those times she found herself praying. For her friends, for forgiveness, for mercy, for a miracle. When she got home from Birmingham, one was ringing the phone.

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"Did she pick up yet?"

"I'll tell you when she picks up, Kaoru." His mother sighed. Her son's crush was cute, but this was the fourth time he had asked. Kaoru sighed moodily and slumped into a seat, giving unnatural attention to scratching his elbow, obviously sulking. Just then, the ringing cut off.

"Hello?" The English sounded far away, distant. She just hoped hers wasn't too rusty.

"Oh, you're home, I was about to give up."

"I just got in...Excuse me, who is this?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. This is a business call. From Yuzuha Hitachiin."

"Hitachiin-san!" Ellie gasped, immediately switching to Japanese. "Did Kaoru-san get home okay? Did Victoria arrive with you?"

"They're both fine." Yuzuha reassured her. "Just worried about you."

"About me, Hitachiin-san?"

"Yes." She nodded. "I'm sure you know why."

"Oh... you heard..."

"It's my business to hear, Ellie. And as your company is on the market now..."

"Hitachiin-san?"

"I'd like to throw my hat into the ring, as it were. Let's see, how would this be...?" The offer she made was slightly low, perhaps, but it just happened to be the exact amount Ellie was supposed to pay to the crown. Amazing what a little research could do.

"I..." She sounded uncertain, not sure how to react to this kindness.

"Of course, it wouldn't be worthwhile moving it all over here when the brand is only really known in the UK. For that price I would expect to get everything- factories, shops, contracts, workers, warehouses, suppliers... what do you think?"

"I... I think you're taking pity on me, Hitachiin-san."

"Is that a problem?"

"No. I'm not going to put my pride first anymore."

"That's good to hear. But consider it a thank you, for looking after Kaoru." Yuzuha smiled. "So you accept?"

"Yes. Yes, thank you!"

"Excellent! I'll send the papers. Talk to Kaoru."

"Wait, I-"

"Mom!" Kaoru protested at the same time, but she had already thrown the phone at him and slipped away. No choice. "...hi, Grey-chan."

"Kaoru-san." Her voice had an emotion he had never heard before. He thought she was crying. "Thank you so much..."

"How do you know I suggested it?" He demanded. "It could have been anyone."

"Just an inkling." She laughed. He couldn't stand it. He hung up.

"Did you just hang up on Ellie?" Victoria demanded. He hadn't heard her come in. "I can't believe you did that! I wanted to say hi!"

"Sorry... I just..." Kaoru couldn't look up at her, knowing his face would be red. When had the sound of Ellie's demented donkey laughter started doing that to him?

"Did you at least tell her you love her?"

"Huh? W-w-what? I... I don't! I love you, Vi-" She forced him to a stop by putting a finger to his lips.

"Yes, you do." She glared. "Agreed?"

"Vicky..." He mumbled, when she took her finger away. He wasn't sure what else to say. "But... what about us?"

She shrugged, kissing him lightly. "I'll share if you do."

"Pardon?"

"If I share you with other girls, you have to share me with other guys." She explained, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Uh... how about we just break up?" Kaoru suggested, wishing he could tell if she was teasing him or not.

"Hmm..." She considered, suddenly kissing him passionately. He did his best not to react. "Alright!" She said a moment later, somehow not out of breath at all. "Now I'm done. Okay, we can break up now." She got up, straightening her skirt.

"...What are you going to do now?" Kaoru asked, guiltily.

"I'm going to go and tell your brother it was his fault and see how long it takes to make him mad." She said, cheerfully. "If I model for free, do you think your mom would let me lodge here?"

"Um... probably, but...You're taking this pretty well!" He finally blurted out.

"Of course." She smiled. "It's Ellie, isn't it? So I know you didn't just fall for her looks. And she's so adorable! I'm just so pleased she finally has a proper admirer!" She suddenly glared. "And what are you grinning about?"

"You." Kaoru smirked. "I thought you just chose her because of her parents... but you really are her friend."

"Well, duh." She rolled her eyes. "I might put on a cute act to get what I want, and yeah, I choose my friends wisely, but once they're my friends, they're my friends."

"So why do the cute act with me?"

"Because you're a sweet, good looking, lovely guy who could get me a great career."

"...So why not do it with Hikaru?"

"Because one is enough, right?" She demanded, suddenly blushing, and flustered. "I'm not talking about this!" She ran for the door.

Interesting.

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"Kaoru!" Tamaki burst into 1A's classroom. Haruhi immediately took cover behind a textbook as he skidded to a halt in front of Kaoru's desk. "Is it true?"

"Kaoru's over there, Tono."

"Huh?"

"Kaoru's over there." Hikaru repeated. "We have a test later and his grades are good enough that it's okay if he doesn't do so well..."

"What? You can't just-!"

"If you slowed down and looked, Tamaki, you would have realised." Kyouya said calmly, sauntering in behind him and noting down that the twins had swapped their partings that day.

"But... but... they..." Tamaki regained control. "I'll deal with this later! Kaoru!" He moved over to the right desk. "Is it true?"

"Is what true?"

"That your mom bought Grace Grahams!"

"Yeah, she did- how did you know?"

"I read it in the stock pages! It is your father's duty to be up to date with the affairs of his family!"

"More accurately," Kyouya interjected, annoyed. "I read it and told him the important parts."

"More importantly!" Tamaki insisted. "You rescued Ellie-chan! That's wonderful! When is she coming over?"

"Huh? She's not."

"But-!"

"She has her own life."

"But you have to be her prince! Her knight in shining armour! You just saved her, you can't leave her there all alone! Not when you love her! Love never gives up! You have to at least try!"

He continued in this bent for some time, even when the bell went and Kyouya left. Even the teacher couldn't get him to be quiet. He seemed oblivious to anything going on outside of his romantic ideals. Eventually, it was Haruhi that snapped.

"Tamaki-senpai!" She shouted, slamming her text book down. "We're waiting to start class!"

"Ah... sorry, Haruhi..." She was mad. His world was ending.

"And what's more, it's up to Kaoru to work out, isn't it? He knows what's best for his situation so stop lecturing him!"

"O-okay, but..."

"Anyway, how can you tell him to try when you haven't?"

"H-huh? Haruhi... do you mean...?"

"Don't criticise him when you haven't tried either!" She snapped. She sounded upset. More upset than she ever was.

"Haruhi..." Tamaki said, softly. Then suddenly, abruptly, he kissed her. "...I'll try."

The room fell into stunned silence.

"...S-suoh! Fujioka! In the hall!" The surprised teacher managed to get out. They didn't seem to mind. With his new found courage, Tamaki took her hand and walked her out. The door shut behind them with a click and the room suddenly exploded. The chaos was such that they didn't get any studying done at all anyway. But at least no-one witnessed Tamaki's awkward, stumbling, ineloquent request that they go out. And at least they didn't hear her completely apathetic sounding 'alright'. It was going to be a rocky road, with such conflicting personalities. Yet somehow, it was obvious they would make it to the end.

Word spread quickly around the school. By the time Tamaki returned to class, Kyouya knew all about it.

"I've cancelled the Host Club for today."

"Huh? Why?"

"We won't reopen until you issue a statement." Kyouya said, sternly.

"Saying what?"

"That you love Haruhi."

"Oh! But I can do that right now!"

"Idiot." Kyouya flicked his forehead. "This is going to hurt a lot of girls and even if the club survives, it will be different. We need to handle this carefully. I think we can make this work for us if we're cautious."

"...right..."

"Tamaki. Don't you think it's time we revealed Haruhi's secret to the school?"

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Friday evening. The heat of the summer was still lingering and the patio windows were open, guests and music spilling out into the garden. Kaoru had gone out too, further than the others, down the lawn, putting space between himself and the others. He walked down to sit on the edge of a small pond, one he and Hikaru had spent a lot of summers catching frogs by when they were kids. It was too late in the year for frogs now, and despite the unusually warm weather, none were appearing. Ignoring the potential of getting grass stains on his suit, he sprawled down on the grass, eventually lying down on his back, looking up at the stars. A beautiful night. He wondered what the weather was doing in England. Probably not much, unless it was raining. He hoped Ellie had gotten her roof fixed.

"Hey. You're supposed to be enjoying the party." Victoria came and stood next to him, jabbing an elegant shoe into his hip. She was wearing the dress he had brought her. Hikaru, Kaoru noticed, couldn't keep his eyes off her. Well, it was fair game now.

"I'll come in a minute, I just needed a break."

"Well, your mom is about to do her speech thing, so we should head back."

"Right." Kaoru said, getting up. Tutting, Victoria brushed the grass off his back as best as she could.

"What were you thinking about?" She asked. "Or should that be 'who'?"

"I'm fine." He answered. "This is a good ending, isn't it?"

"I don't see how it can be, when you aren't together." Victoria sighed, exasperated, but left it at that; turning on her heel and heading back for the house.

Kaoru scratched his cheek idly, watching her go. She would probably be in a mood with him now. But he was sure of this. This was the best ending, of that he was sure. As summer had turned to autumn, they had all grown too. Tamaki and Haruhi were inside somewhere, dancing together, gently debuting Haruhi as a girl before revealing it properly at school on Monday. The club was going to go through some changes, but none of them seemed scared. Kyouya would keep the club going somehow. It was just time for a change. Hikaru had danced with Victoria earlier, though that hadn't really worked as they both tried to outdo the other, the showboating leaving them both breathless. Hikaru seemed to have accepted Haruhi and Tamaki in his own begrudging way, maybe beginning to move on. He had survived a summer without his brother and liked a girl in that way, had his heart broken and recovered. He was moving forward. Victoria had met her match, someone she didn't have to be false with, and found friends she didn't want to sell out for something better. He himself had learnt lessons about gratitude, about patience and about how stubborn you should be, he had learnt he perhaps wasn't as mature or as astute as he'd thought- and that that was okay, had found ways to be worthwhile without it, had learnt not to judge on looks. He had learnt how to let go.

And what of Ellie? This would be a new start for her. It had taken a little bullying to make her pull herself back together, but she had done it. She was just beginning to learn to stand on her own, to make her own path, to face her problems without running away, to stand up for herself and work hard for what she wanted. She still had a long way to go, but now she wouldn't be stopped before she began. For everything she had taught him, this was the least he could do.

Maybe he did have some slight feelings for her. But they both had too much to lose to risk on a crush. Some things were best left in the summer. This, he knew, was the best ending for them all. And the best beginning. He had really grown up.

Then his mom made that speech.

"Thank you all for coming." Yuzuha said, formally. "I'm so glad you could all join us. This latest deal wasn't one I had approved by the board so I'm so happy you all consented to come and celebrate with us!" This was met with a ripple of laughter. Yuzuha was famous for her impulsive decisions without the approval of the stock holders, but ninety-nine times out of a hundred they paid off. "I'm pleased with the acquisition of Grace Grahams, which I'm confident can be built up into something great, as well as providing us with a useful foothold in Europe, and thanks to the latest drama, a lot of publicity over there. I had hoped Miss Grahams would be joining us, but my son has yet to tell her he loves her."

Then she stopped dead, and stared right at Kaoru. Everyone else followed her gaze, and soon everyone in the room was surveying him in silence.

_Screw being an 'adult'. _

The thought came out of nowhere, but he pushed it aside. He couldn't just go and force it on her. He had to be mature, sensible.

_What is an adult, anyway? Just go tell her. _

No. He couldn't be stupid about this. It was just a crush.

_That, and you love her. _

He couldn't argue with that.

_Screw the perfect deep ending. Go make a prat of yourself for love. _

For some reason, his internal voice sounded like Ellie. _ Screw it. _He turned and ran from the room.

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"Put the blind down, I want to sleep!"

"It's morning here. When it's light, it's time to be awake."

"But not when I'm tired."

"The sooner you adjust, the easier it will be!"

The light across the seats flashed light and dark, light and dark, light and dark. Kaoru was getting annoyed.

"Will you two stop it?" He snapped, crumpling up the complimentary magazine for the millionth time. "Why are you even here?"

"To make sure you don't chicken out." Hikaru said. "And to tell Grey-chan you aren't dating Victoria anymore."

"And quite frankly, he's so suspicious looking, Ellie would never believe him." Victoria said, calmly. "So came to convince her."

"Who's suspicious? I'm not the one who's kissed gay guys."

"Yeah, right."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Kaoru crumpled the magazine. As if this flight wasn't going to be long enough.

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Soon after eleven on Saturday morning, the rain stopped and the skies cleared. Ellie took advantage of the break in the weather to throw open the back door and sweep out the kitchen, stopping to breath in the scent of damp grass and woodland. This really was a lovely part of the country. Now she had been able to pay off the fine, maybe she would keep it- the mortgage was almost paid off anyway. There wasn't much work nearby, but she didn't mind commuting to Worcester or even Birmingham if she could afford it. Still. She had time to work it out. Kaoru had taught her so much about letting go of the past and holding onto the future, she had to move on. It was the best way to repay his kindness.

The allure of the fresh air was too much, and she took a cup of tea out onto the decking, settling into a rocking chair. She hadn't sat out here since Kaoru had left. She looked over at his chair; and it was his chair now, she didn't think of it as her fathers'. That was as much a sign as any that she had moved on, wasn't it? And in time, maybe it wouldn't be Kaoru's chair anymore, but hers. Or maybe she should sell the house and the contents and start again from scratch. That had a certain appeal too.

Kaoru had given her so much courage. She wondered what he was doing right now. Then she heard the doorbell, and opened it to him, Victoria, and someone she assumed was Hikaru.

"...K-Kaoru-san! Everyone! What are you doing here?"

"I..." Somehow, Kaoru found words escaped him.

"I'm here to tell you Victoria and Kaoru broke up." Hikaru said lazily, after a few minutes silence.

"Right, I'm dating this guy instead." Victoria nodded.

"Wait, when did that happen?"

"Did you, or did you not, take me on a date!"

"Only to prove you wrong."

"A date is a date!"

"Only one! That doesn't mean we're dating!"

While this squabbling was going on, Kaoru slipped inside unnoticed and stood awkwardly in the hall with Ellie, who seemed just as awkward.

"...it's lovely to see you again." She offered. "Did you want to show your brother England? You're welcome to stay here again..."

"No, I... I... I needed to know..."

"...yes?"

"I needed to know... I never asked..." It was no use. His courage had gone. What if she was with Greg? "I need to know how many people were going to St Ives!"

"Huh?" She seemed taken aback. "Oh, the riddle?"

"Yeah!"

"...one." She smiled. "You were going, everyone else was coming back."

"What? No way..."

They looked at each other, then burst out laughing, more laughter than it really deserved, but they couldn't help it.

"I'm... glad you're here, Kaoru-san." She said, cautiously.

"Ellie. Listen. I... really like you. So... I want us to be together. 'Together' together." He was embarrassed, knew he was going bright red. Of course, so was she, and couldn't look at him either. "I'd like that too..." She said, carefully. "But... Kaoru-san, I'm in a weird place right now. My life was in pieces and I'm just trying to put it back together. I don't want to lead you on, I'm just not sure I'm ready for a relationship."

"Oh. Okay."

Silence.

"I'll go make tea!" She volunteered, fleeing. Kaoru was suddenly annoyed. Enough was enough.

"Ellie." He growled, grabbing her arm. "You're never 'ready' for anything." Feeling reckless, he kissed her.

She didn't push him away. She didn't even try to resist. Just wrapped her arms tightly around him and kissed back. Beneath her lips, Kaoru couldn't help but smile slightly. He was right.

She was ready.

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Kaoru had always been quicker at getting up, so when Hikaru was up and moving before his brother for once he made the most of it. He took a long, leisurely shower, dressed and headed back into their bedroom, wanting to see if Kaoru was up to have breakfast with him, too impatient to wait any longer. The maids, he saw, had already slipped in and made his bed, but Kaoru's was still occupied.

"Oi, Kaoru." He said, shaking his shoulder. "You can't stay there all day, you know. We have school."

"Get off..." Kaoru said, unusually bad tempered as he hit Hikaru's hand away and buried his head deeper into the pillows. "I don't feel well."

"Oh really?" Hikaru smirked. "And you're _sure _it's not just because Grey-chan is starting at Ouran today and you're worried she'll be too cute for you to handle?"

"Mmm." Kaoru clearly didn't care enough to rise to his brother's teasing, scratching his arm. "She'll be okay... Vicky will take care of her..."

"And what if some guy steals her?" Hikaru demanded, determined to scare him no matter how unlikely it was. Then he noticed his brother was scratching his other arm now. "...Are you okay?"

"Like I said..."

Concerned now, Hikaru felt his forehead. "Wow, that's a fever, huh?"

"Mmm..." Kaoru repeated, scratching the back of his neck.

"...You keep scratching..." Hikaru said, peering through the gloom. Then he smirked. "...You know what this is, right?"

"No."

"You keep scratching... you have a fever... You're tired and indifferent..."

Realisation dawned. "Chicken pox." Kaoru groaned.

"I'll get mom." Hikaru said, airily. For all the growing up they had done, some things didn't change. Once a twin, always a twin.

He just hoped Ellie would be able to visit him.

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"And here she is, in her television debut, performing her single 'Sweetest of Times'! Over to you, Venus!"

As the woman stepped up to the microphone, her pale skin ivory under the stage lights, the applause gave way to the first notes of a soothing classical ballad, two near-identical men watched from the wings. One was just a little taller than the other.

"_Wishing on a star won't change a thing _

_You always wake up from every dream_

_Not every road is going your way_

_And the world never changes, oh no_

_But it was sweeter, much sweeter, just to have you_

_Love never dies_

_From saying goodbye_

_It never regrets_

_That sweetest of times_

_We're letting go but my heart's holding on_

_I'm going forward but I'll leave it behind for you_

_Tears that reflected what may have been_

_You wiped them away with your lips_

_You told me 'Don't cry, it's only goodbye,_

_And, oh baby, that don't mean a thing'_

_But it was sweeter, much sweeter, to be holding you_

_Love never dies_

_From saying goodbye_

_It never regrets_

_That sweetest of times_

_We're letting go but my heart's holding on_

_I'm going forward but I'll leave it behind for you_

_Days that were made of wishes come true_

_Waking up and be still holding you_

_And not every road was going our way_

_But we'd change the world, o~oh_

_And in those days I couldn't cry_

_Because in those days I'd never told you goodbye_

_And it was sweeter, sweeter, much sweeter_

_That's how I know we'll still be together_

_The body can't separate the heart and the mind..."_

"...Are you sure about this?" The shorter of the men whispered to the other.

"It's big and showy and flashy." The other answered. "She'll love it."

"I meant in general." The shorter said, patting his back encouragingly. His brother's hands were tight balled fists of nerves.

"...I'm sure."

"_Love never dies_

_From saying goodbye_

_It never regrets_

_That sweetest of times_

_We're letting go but my heart's holding on_

_I'm going forward but I'll leave it behind for the sweetest, sweetest, sweetest of times..."_

More wild applause. The host of the celebrity show brought the idol back to the settee.

"Brilliant! Wonderful! I loved it! I know it's going to be a huge hit!"

"Aww, thank you."

"Now, let's just talk a little about you, Venus- you're not Japanese, right?"

"No, I'm originally from England. I moved here when I was sixteen."

"Wow, wow, England, huh? And since then you've been modelling and acting and now singing..."

"Yes, that's right. Japan is a much better place to have a career in the talent industry, you could never be an all rounder in England." This accompanied by an air-headed giggle, in case she sounded too intelligent.

"But it's not just the work, that keeps you in Japan, right?"

"No... I also love the scenery and the wildlife, and the hot springs..."

"And your lovely boyfriend."

Another giggle. "Yes, that too."

"Well..." The host struck a pose of mystery, then changed to the dramatic revelation. "We just so happen to have him here! Hikaru-san, please come out!"

"Oh my goodness! Hikaru!" Victoria gasped, still in idol mode. "What are you doing here?" She squealed.

"Hikaru-san has something to ask you." The host smiled beguilingly. "But first, Hikaru-san, tell us about life with Venus. What is she really like?"

"No, don't ask him that!" She squealed, cutesy-embarrassed.

"Well, not like this." Hikaru said. "She's actually a moody cow."

"Ah!" Laughter from the crowd. Mock indigence from the idol.

"You say that, Hikaru-san, but didn't you come here to ask something...? Something very special, live on national television..."

"Um... right." Suddenly, he was nervous. He stood up, reaching in his pocket and pulling out a black ring box. He got down on one knee before her, and with the screams of the crowd, didn't even have time to get the question out before she had screamed 'yes', leapt on him, and kissed him passionately- live on national television. That was her mysterious facade ruined.

Smiling, Kaoru went to call Ellie. She was working right now, but he would leave a message.

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"Hi, everyone! Welcome to the third episode commentary! I'm Naoko Katsura, voice of Shinobu!"

"I'm Makoto Tetsuya, voice of Kana! Is everyone enjoying the show?"

"And I'm Ellie Grahams, voice of Miranda."

"Ne, Grey-chan, this is your first time doing a commentary, right?"

"Right! It's my first real part, too, so please treat me kindly!"

"Aww, but you were so cute in that one episode of _Lucky Penny_! Did everyone know Grey-chan voiced Riku-chan's long lost cousin?"

"Mako-chan, don't forget when she played the young Matsuda-sensei in _Fighting Doctor Love Triangle_! I was so sad that show ended... but what an honour! To play Matsuda-sensei!"

"You guys... stop teasing me about my bit parts..."

Behind a glass screen, the director watched the three women interact in front of the microphones, the third episode on the small screen for them to comment on for the first DVD volume. Ellie had proven to be a good choice. Although virtually unknown, bar a few minor roles the others were teasing her about now, he had sensed she had the clarity and timing to make a good voice actress. Particularly with that adorable English accent. She had been perfect for Miranda, and though she had little experience and less training, and a performance that was far from perfect, the relatively minor character had proved popular with the fans. Making the commentary was a different matter all together, but so far he was pleased with her progress. If this went well, he would try to get her introduced to the fans at the DVD signings...

And then she ruined it all when the mobile in her pocket went off, half way through the episode. She looked mortified. Luckily, Naoko was experienced enough to recover it so the recording wouldn't have to be scrapped.

"Oh no." She sighed. "Grey-chan left her phone switched on. It's because it's her first time. She's a greenhorn!"

"I'm sorry." Relieved, Ellie had recovered too. "I'll turn it off."

"No way." Naoko smiled. "I think everyone deserves to hear what's happening! As punishment, she should have to answer it, ne, everyone?"

"Right!" Makoto agreed. "Especially as none of us are in this scene."

"No!"

"Yes!"

"...fine." Ellie picked up. "Hello?"

"Ellie, hi. I was waiting for your voicemail to cut in- aren't you at work?"

"Um, yes, we're recording right now..."

"Ah! I'm sorry! I'll go now- just wanted to say it worked."

"She said yes?"

"Of course she did. Bye!"

"Well?" Makoto demanded. "Ah, everyone, Grey-chan took a personal call while at work!"

"I'm sorry." Ellie said. "But, my best friend just got engaged! Does everyone know Venus, the idol? Let's all congratulate her, okay?"

_Spoken like a true idol, _the director thought. The rest of the recording went off without a hitch.

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When Ellie left for the evening, Kaoru was waiting for her. They were going to meet Hikaru and Victoria for a celebratory drink. It was a warm evening, high summer, almost exactly seven years since they met- long enough to feel completely relaxed in one another's company. They had time to stroll leisurely down the street, watching people leaving businesses and heading home, listening to the cicadas buzzing over the traffic noise, talking about nothing much.

"So..." Kaoru said, finally, squeezing her hand tighter in his. "Can we tell them yet?"

"Hmm, give it another day." She replied, squeezing back.

"But it's already been three months!"

"Then one more day won't hurt." She said, coyly, kissing his cheek. And the matter was settled.

After all, Victoria would have made an enormous fuss if she had known Ellie was engaged first.

**-**_**The End-**_

A/N: The end! I hope it wasn't too abrupt, but it's midnight and if I don't sleep soon I shall be sleeping in Church tomorrow XD To everyone who read, thank you very much, and I hope you enjoyed. :) I'll be working over at Kasakeira if anyone wants to come. It's been a journey, and everyone has grown up. Let's all move forward too! Yooooooosh!


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